1.) Description- It was a cold, dark night in October. Penn State had just come off a huge win against Ohio State and Happy Valley had been partying all day. But now it was quiet, too quiet. The corner of Curtin Rd. and University Dr., usually full of tailgaters, was now empty. As Officer Weston was doing his rounds of the campus, he could not figure out if this silence was good or bad. He was hoping it was a good sign, but knew that since Penn State was such a largely populated school that something must be going on. He figured that kids had gone down to Frat Row, and since it was only 11 o'clock he would have a little bit of free time before he had to start doing his rounds through campus. As he pulled up to the light on Curtin, he slowly came to a stop at the red light. While waiting at the light he began to look around the campus. He looked at Beaver Stadium and the Bryce Jordan Center. Both of these buildings had their lights still on. He thought to himself that other than his kids he had never seen anything more beautiful. Especially, with the mountains in the background. Then in an instant the scene changed. As the light changed to green Officer Weston slowly took his foot off the break and onto the gas. As the car began to accelerate Weston saw a bright light. He turned to his right and a Ford Bronco was charging right at him with no sign of slowing down. He quickly slammed on his breaks, allowing the car to go through the light. Then he backed up, turned around and changed directions to follow the car up University Dr. He turned his sirens on and after following the car for a good five minutes the car finally stopped.
He got out of his car and walked up to the driver door of the Bronco. When he saw who the driver was he was not shocked. It was a boy in his young twenties. Weston's immediate thought was that the boy was drunk since he drove through a red light and had been heading from Frat Row. Officer Weston took out his flashlight, or that is what the boy thought. Really, Officer Weston was testing his BAC. He was using new technology called the passive alcohol sensor. It is a new device that can be seen as helpful to police officers, but invasive to the general public so it is a current topic of debate.
2.) Interviews-
- name: Paul Hehn
age: 18
year: Freshman
Quote: "I think it is a very good idea. It seems to be a safe nonintrusive way for officers to figure out whether a person has been drinking or not."
- name: Shannon Gethard
age: 18
year: Freshman
Quote: "I think that while it is going to be very beneficial in helping to decrease drunk driving because people are not going to want to risk it, but when it comes to student privacy she does not really agree with the process. It's annoying, but it's beneficial."
- name: Drew Renn
age: 21
year: Junior
Quote: "I think it is a good thing. I think you should never mix drinking and driving. I am very against drunk driving. I am 21, the other day I had one beer and I waited. When you mix consuming alcohol and drinking you are not thinking."
3.) Facts:
Newspaper Article: Project Zero Tolerance (September 22, 2011)
Facts: Several Studies conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety concluded that passive alcohol sensors increase detection of alcohol by nearly 50 percent.
- State College area police are actively promoting this new enforcement initiative to remind young drivers that DUI enforcement is focusing on them. The "Have you Seen the Light?" advertising campaign is aimed at persuading would-be drinking drivers that they should change their behavior or risk arrest.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8460734
Facts: Measurements could be taken much more easily and quickly with the passive sensor, whose readings correlated very strongly (r = .87) with the evidentiary device. Moreover, for criterion blood alcohol concentration levels ranging from 100 mg/dL to 20 mg/dL, a large proportion of motorists could be accurately identified as being above or below the criterion, with relatively few false-negative or false-positive identification
- The use of passive alcohol sensors at sobriety checkpoints should allow motorists to be processed very quickly with minimal inconvenience.
4.) Two Areas:
1.) Drunk Driving- I want to figure out more of the facts and risks so I can have better details and support in my paper
2.) Other Devices- Compare the Passive Alcohol Test to other techniques that police officers use.
Friday, September 30, 2011
Friday, September 23, 2011
#1 Party School
The issue of the article was about partying schools. The main focus of the article was State College, Pennsylvania because Penn State was named the number one party school in 2009, but the speaker's also discuss other schools. Some subtopics that were discussed in the article were the amount that people drink, the school's plan to reduce drinking, and the tragedies that have occurred due to drinking.
The reason that this issue was being investigated was because problems with drinking at universities has grown significantly in the past few decades. The researchers were trying to show the typical lifestyle of college students at a party school.
The audience that the speakers are trying to reach are students that are in college and parents or any adults. The speakers are addressing college students because they are trying to inform them about college life and warning them about the dangers that can come with drinking. The article was for parents and adults because it informs them how college has changed and what their children are being exposed to right now.
Some facts and details that the speakers talked about were the details that were included in the prologue from the woman's house. Other details were the kids on the drunk bus, the fact that kids now drink mostly hard liquor instead of beer, the unniversities plans to stop partying like the setting up of late night at the HUB, and that win or lose there are parties. Some facts that they included were that the limit for binge drinking for girls is four drinks and for boys is five drinks. Also, the fact that half the students at Penn State binge drink on the weekend. For the most part, the article was very lighthearted, but when the speaker brought up the details of the boy's death and tragic deaths at other schools it changed to be very depressing.
The conclusion of the article is that drinking is still around in college, but that since the tragic accidents of students have occurred, students have become safer. It was also discussed how when Graham Spanier became president of the school he tried to get rid of Penn State's reputation and got booed. It is not his goal to make kids safer and inform them on the dangers of drinking, and not to pretend like drinking does not happen.
Research that was included in the report were the statistics of the amount of drinking that students do. There were a lot of interviews throughout the report, but some that stand out in my memory are the pizza delivery man talking about his broken jaw, the fraternity boy, the business owner saying that he liked the students, the drunk 21 year old at the tailgate, and the freshmen getting on the bus and discussing how they weren't slutty until college. Some professionals that spoke were the police officer and Graham Spanier's speech when he first became president. All of the facts and interviews allowed for the report to become more detailed and for humor to be added to a serious topic.
Some narrative techniques that are used in the report are details, a specific topic, multiple viewpoints of the topic, and obviously dialogue and humor. The speakers also used pathos to try to get the students listening to be safer drinkers by telling them sad stories about drinking.
I wish that the report had been a little bit shorter, but overrall I really enjoyed it. I thought that the speakers, whether intentionally or unintentionally, included a lot of humor into the report by interviewing drunk kids. I also loved the section titles. "I'm not as think as you drunk I am" was my favorite. I literally laughed out loud when I read it. Some things that I did not like about the report was that since you had to listen to it instead of read it, it was pretty hard to focus on it at points. I also thought that the section about down town businesses could have been shorter or more interesting. Some thing that I would have liked to learn more about in the story are more comparisons of Penn State and other schools that explain what makes Penn State a party school.
The reason that this issue was being investigated was because problems with drinking at universities has grown significantly in the past few decades. The researchers were trying to show the typical lifestyle of college students at a party school.
The audience that the speakers are trying to reach are students that are in college and parents or any adults. The speakers are addressing college students because they are trying to inform them about college life and warning them about the dangers that can come with drinking. The article was for parents and adults because it informs them how college has changed and what their children are being exposed to right now.
Some facts and details that the speakers talked about were the details that were included in the prologue from the woman's house. Other details were the kids on the drunk bus, the fact that kids now drink mostly hard liquor instead of beer, the unniversities plans to stop partying like the setting up of late night at the HUB, and that win or lose there are parties. Some facts that they included were that the limit for binge drinking for girls is four drinks and for boys is five drinks. Also, the fact that half the students at Penn State binge drink on the weekend. For the most part, the article was very lighthearted, but when the speaker brought up the details of the boy's death and tragic deaths at other schools it changed to be very depressing.
The conclusion of the article is that drinking is still around in college, but that since the tragic accidents of students have occurred, students have become safer. It was also discussed how when Graham Spanier became president of the school he tried to get rid of Penn State's reputation and got booed. It is not his goal to make kids safer and inform them on the dangers of drinking, and not to pretend like drinking does not happen.
Research that was included in the report were the statistics of the amount of drinking that students do. There were a lot of interviews throughout the report, but some that stand out in my memory are the pizza delivery man talking about his broken jaw, the fraternity boy, the business owner saying that he liked the students, the drunk 21 year old at the tailgate, and the freshmen getting on the bus and discussing how they weren't slutty until college. Some professionals that spoke were the police officer and Graham Spanier's speech when he first became president. All of the facts and interviews allowed for the report to become more detailed and for humor to be added to a serious topic.
Some narrative techniques that are used in the report are details, a specific topic, multiple viewpoints of the topic, and obviously dialogue and humor. The speakers also used pathos to try to get the students listening to be safer drinkers by telling them sad stories about drinking.
I wish that the report had been a little bit shorter, but overrall I really enjoyed it. I thought that the speakers, whether intentionally or unintentionally, included a lot of humor into the report by interviewing drunk kids. I also loved the section titles. "I'm not as think as you drunk I am" was my favorite. I literally laughed out loud when I read it. Some things that I did not like about the report was that since you had to listen to it instead of read it, it was pretty hard to focus on it at points. I also thought that the section about down town businesses could have been shorter or more interesting. Some thing that I would have liked to learn more about in the story are more comparisons of Penn State and other schools that explain what makes Penn State a party school.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Bird by Bird
Now that I have finally finished reading Anne Lamott's Bird by Bird, it is hard for me to pick specific scenes that stick out in my mind. I would definitely have to say that certain scenes like when she described the school lunch, when she talked about gardening and the vineyard, and when she described the death of her friend Pammy and her other friends' baby Brice dying definitely stayed with me. I loved how descriptive she was in all these scenes. Some overrall ideas that stayed with me are what Lamott said about taking a break to get rid of writer's block, using a lot of details, and not writing to become famous, but writing to express yourself and because you love it.
Two pieces of advice that Lamott Used that will definitely stay with me are how to stop writer's block and why to write like I just mentioned. Since I have no desire to become a writer, I have always just written when I was assigned to, but now I understand that I should write for myself not for my peers or even for my teachers. I feel that that will release some pressure and even maybe make her other tip easier. Her other tips of how to get rid of writers' block really appealed to me. I feel like her one idea of writer a couple paragraphs or at least breaking the paper up makes it seem a lot less threatening and manageable. It allows you to think clearly because you are thinking about the now and not the future.
I think that I was moved by these two pieces because I thought that they would relate well to my writing and the problems that I go through when I get a new assignment. Every time I get an assignment I spent a majority of my time finding other things to do to procrastinate. Then, it is the day before the assignment is due and I write it because I have to. Now I know that instead of facing the assignment as torture I can make it something for myself and even maybe see a good grade as a personal achievement. I also know that if I start an assignment early and write it in sections it will be much easier to write. Instead of waiting until the last day and having to write a five page paper, I can break it up and then it will not be as much torture.
Some writing techniques that Lamott used to make me interested in her ideas and consider putting these two into my techniques for writing papers are her use of flashback and detail. While reading the entire book, I would just wait until I could read another story about Sam or Pammy. Not that I didn't think Lamott's ideas were interesting, but for the most past I was more interested in how she applied her ideas to life to show examples. Her use of flashback and good stories allowed her to get her point of writing techniques and beliefs across while adding some aspects of writing that would make her readers interested in herself and her book. Reading this book was the best of both worlds (If you're confused those worlds are writing tools and entertainment!).
Two pieces of advice that Lamott Used that will definitely stay with me are how to stop writer's block and why to write like I just mentioned. Since I have no desire to become a writer, I have always just written when I was assigned to, but now I understand that I should write for myself not for my peers or even for my teachers. I feel that that will release some pressure and even maybe make her other tip easier. Her other tips of how to get rid of writers' block really appealed to me. I feel like her one idea of writer a couple paragraphs or at least breaking the paper up makes it seem a lot less threatening and manageable. It allows you to think clearly because you are thinking about the now and not the future.
I think that I was moved by these two pieces because I thought that they would relate well to my writing and the problems that I go through when I get a new assignment. Every time I get an assignment I spent a majority of my time finding other things to do to procrastinate. Then, it is the day before the assignment is due and I write it because I have to. Now I know that instead of facing the assignment as torture I can make it something for myself and even maybe see a good grade as a personal achievement. I also know that if I start an assignment early and write it in sections it will be much easier to write. Instead of waiting until the last day and having to write a five page paper, I can break it up and then it will not be as much torture.
Some writing techniques that Lamott used to make me interested in her ideas and consider putting these two into my techniques for writing papers are her use of flashback and detail. While reading the entire book, I would just wait until I could read another story about Sam or Pammy. Not that I didn't think Lamott's ideas were interesting, but for the most past I was more interested in how she applied her ideas to life to show examples. Her use of flashback and good stories allowed her to get her point of writing techniques and beliefs across while adding some aspects of writing that would make her readers interested in herself and her book. Reading this book was the best of both worlds (If you're confused those worlds are writing tools and entertainment!).
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Confessions of a Bad Teacher
Elements of memoir that were being employed by John Owens in "Confessions of a Bad Teacher" are by choosing an important moment in his life, his telling of a personal nonfiction story, and his use of description and dialogue. Owens had a successful career as a publisher, but he chose to write about a time in his life where he was not very successful, but made a difference in his life. He chose the personal, true story of his experience with poor inner city children because even though it was not his most financially successful time, it was the moment in his life when he realized not to judge people by their appearances and by their social status, culture, and upbringing. The last element of description and dialogue was my favorite part of the story. I also enjoyed his use of humor. One example from the text is when a student yells "I'd bring Pringles!" It is such a simple sentence, but I thought it made the story so much better. I also enjoyed his adjectives when he was describing other characters like the indian man and the heavy principal.
In summary, I think this story was about personnal triumph versus what is expected from others. On the outside, this appears to be a story about how unfair the New York school districts rules and principals can be, but I think it is so much more. The story is about how a man that had no experience with the cultures and lifestyles of the children in a poor high school was able to ignore the negative criticism he received and made a difference in children's lives. Though he did decide to leave teaching, he had not given up when the children were rude and disruptive. He worked hard and learned how to relate to his students. And, in the scene when he finally leaves the children show their appreciation by getting him a cake and asking him to tie one of their ties one last time.
Some of the main tensions and conflicts in the story are between Owens and Ms. P and between Owens and his students like Africah and Natasha. The conflict is present between Owens and Ms. P because all principals in the district are rude to the teachers. It is known that they are looking for teachers that they can give "U's" to. The conflict between him and Ms. P is also present because of his conflict with the students. When Owens first has confrontations with Africah and Natasha and her crew he does not know how to handle them. He never successfully deals with Natasha, but he finds a way to calm down Africah by rapping lyrics to a song she knows and making her enjoy class. His resolution is in the end of the story when he leaves the principal and his students but has learned a lot about life.
The point of the story is that you should never judge anything before you experience it. Or at least that's what I think the point is. I think that if he had judged his students or if he had listened to the man that told him to run Owens never would have experienced this life changing year. He did not listen to the man and he decided to try things out for himself. He did not judge the people in the school before he had gotten a chance to experience it for himself.
The story is relevant because schools like the one that Owens taught at are still around. It is also relevant because Owens talks of his experience teaching and many kids my age are trying to decide what they want to study. Also, like Owen, my peers and I are new to a school and are meeting new people. It is also very important that we give all people a chance and do not judge others from their appearance, culture, or from what other people say.
Owens' intended audience is any person who is thinking of whether or not they should make a change in their life or try a new experience. It can be directed at people of all ages which makes it a ery universal story. Though Owens' direct case is that he is starting at a new school, the main theme of the paper can be transitioned to many different situations.
Some strong narrative techniques that Owens used are humor, description, and dialogue. Like I said earlier, I think that Owens use of description to allow the reader to imagine his characters is very detailed and makes his story more interesting. His use of dialogue adds a new level to his story by revealing his characters in other ways. These two elements and his use of humor make the reader stay interested in the story and make a reader want to find out what happens in the end.
Owens transitions his paper by separating it into sections. These include his interview for the job, his first class, his second class, when he leaves, and even one scene that flashes back to when he first met Ms. P. These sections and their titles make it easier for readers to follow the storyline of the paper.
In summary, I think this story was about personnal triumph versus what is expected from others. On the outside, this appears to be a story about how unfair the New York school districts rules and principals can be, but I think it is so much more. The story is about how a man that had no experience with the cultures and lifestyles of the children in a poor high school was able to ignore the negative criticism he received and made a difference in children's lives. Though he did decide to leave teaching, he had not given up when the children were rude and disruptive. He worked hard and learned how to relate to his students. And, in the scene when he finally leaves the children show their appreciation by getting him a cake and asking him to tie one of their ties one last time.
Some of the main tensions and conflicts in the story are between Owens and Ms. P and between Owens and his students like Africah and Natasha. The conflict is present between Owens and Ms. P because all principals in the district are rude to the teachers. It is known that they are looking for teachers that they can give "U's" to. The conflict between him and Ms. P is also present because of his conflict with the students. When Owens first has confrontations with Africah and Natasha and her crew he does not know how to handle them. He never successfully deals with Natasha, but he finds a way to calm down Africah by rapping lyrics to a song she knows and making her enjoy class. His resolution is in the end of the story when he leaves the principal and his students but has learned a lot about life.
The point of the story is that you should never judge anything before you experience it. Or at least that's what I think the point is. I think that if he had judged his students or if he had listened to the man that told him to run Owens never would have experienced this life changing year. He did not listen to the man and he decided to try things out for himself. He did not judge the people in the school before he had gotten a chance to experience it for himself.
The story is relevant because schools like the one that Owens taught at are still around. It is also relevant because Owens talks of his experience teaching and many kids my age are trying to decide what they want to study. Also, like Owen, my peers and I are new to a school and are meeting new people. It is also very important that we give all people a chance and do not judge others from their appearance, culture, or from what other people say.
Owens' intended audience is any person who is thinking of whether or not they should make a change in their life or try a new experience. It can be directed at people of all ages which makes it a ery universal story. Though Owens' direct case is that he is starting at a new school, the main theme of the paper can be transitioned to many different situations.
Some strong narrative techniques that Owens used are humor, description, and dialogue. Like I said earlier, I think that Owens use of description to allow the reader to imagine his characters is very detailed and makes his story more interesting. His use of dialogue adds a new level to his story by revealing his characters in other ways. These two elements and his use of humor make the reader stay interested in the story and make a reader want to find out what happens in the end.
Owens transitions his paper by separating it into sections. These include his interview for the job, his first class, his second class, when he leaves, and even one scene that flashes back to when he first met Ms. P. These sections and their titles make it easier for readers to follow the storyline of the paper.
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