1. I think of the main idea of my paper, a few subtopics to be the subject of each paragraph, and then I begin writing down anything that comes to mind. One technique I might use is to make a list or outline to guide my writing. This helps my papers have a lot more structure.
2. Outlining ideas before writing a draft keeps the paper organized, structured and allows the writer to have a flow when writing, without having to stop to think of more ideas.
3. One strategy for revision is to look at your draft as a whole. There should be a main idea for each paragraph and for the entire paper. After writing I can look at each paragraph and write out a short summary of each paragraph to make sure all the facts apply and flow together. Another strategy is to ask questions. It is necessary to question the clarity, completeness, length, variety, and type of language used. Lastly, do a final check for errors, finalize the title, and make the paper presentable. This tip includes thoroughly checking for spelling errors beyond spell check. Also, the title should give the reader some idea of what the paper is about. And, of course, it should be in MLA format.
4. Providing three different viewpoints in the Exploratory Paper helps for the future opinion paper because you have plenty of facts to counter. Disproving the counter-arguments is the most effective way to write an argumentative paper.
5. One peer editing strategy is to give a small group of peers a copy of the essay being reviewed, and read the paper aloud as the editors make notes of problem areas to be discussed later. Another strategy is to have each person read the paper individually and make corrections, a sort of round robin technique. Revising in a group can make the assignment more entertaining and fun, as well as provide feedback for the author right away.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Thursday, October 25, 2007
annotated bibliography
Couric, Katie. “Issues That Divide: Assisted Death” CBS Evening News. 24 November 2004.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/11/24/eveningnews/main657749.shtml
I will use this site as a specific case of assisted death. This can help me to explore the future risks of having it legalized. The article reviews a case from over 4 years ago, when a woman, who was terminally ill, was assisted to death through medications. This news story is probably very widespread and most likely takes a mostly unbiased stance towards the topic. This article didn’t alter my viewpoint because it doesn’t completely take a stance.
Braddock, Clarence. “Physician-Assisted Suicide.” Ethics in Medecine. University of Washington School of Medecine (1998)
http://depts.washington.edu/bioethx/topics/pas.html
This site will help me become more familiar with terminology and different aspects of my topic. I will most likely not use quotes from it, but I can use for my knowledge. Specifically it contains the definition of the topic, my topic compared to euthanasia, and arguments in favor and against the topic. This should help me learn basic facts about the issue that I didn’t know before.
Humphry, Derek. “Tread Carefully When You Help to Die.” World Right-to-Die Newsletter #41, June 2002
http://assistedsuicide.org/suicide_laws.html
This site covers the details of a case. This site will be very useful because it views the issue in a different side than the stance then I plan to take so it will help me find arguments to counter. It is the story of an 85 years old woman who had a painful and terminal disease. This story ultimately leads to a court case involving her family who had aided in the death. This leads to the issue of legality and constitutional rights.
Miller, Franklin; Meier, Diane. “Voluntary Death.” Annals of Internal Medecine.128.7 (1998) (559-562)
http://www.annals.org/cgi/content/full/128/7/559
This site explains a method of assisted suicide, in which the patient in theory controls his/her own death. It compares and contrasts assisted suicide to terminal dehydration. I would use this information to explain the potential risks and benefits or assisted suicide, by comparing it to another method. The target audience is other doctors. Therefore the information is most likely very detailed and factual rather then opinionated and unclear.
Ontario Consultants. “Physician Assisted Suicide.” Religious Tolerance. 2007 http://www.religioustolerance.org/euth_us3.htm
This website article will be very helpful for my paper. It goes in detail about the actual court case that took place in regard to my topic; it explains the Pain- Relief Promotion Act and other acts pertaining to the topic and lastly, statistics about what physicians would do when put in potential assisted death situations. The last set of information would really help to show that the act would either be taking place anyway or on the other hand, that not one doctor would actual do it.
Board of Directors. “Physician Assisted Death.” American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine. February 14, 2007
http://www.aahpm.org/positions/suicide.html
American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine (AAHPM) believes in continuing treatment of an illness, until a patient desires to end his/her life or until he/she can take the pill by his/her own hand. This is clearly a biased article, which I could not use for facts but rather reasoning towards one side. The essay is displayed on the site of an organization which provides people with the resources for obtaining PAS. Therefore, the target audience is most likely those who are for legalizing PAS.
Quill TE, Battin MP.eds. “Physician-Assisted Dying, The Case for Palliative Care and Patient Choice.” Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2004.
This article explores the right for patient choice. It explains the actual legal rights and compares it to the constitution and present laws that are in place. The target audience is potentially those who are trying to read up on specifics about the law because it provides mostly legal facts. This article would be useful for listing facts because it doesn’t seem to be biased in way; rather it simply displays the facts. This would be useful to me when describing the issue in my first essay.
Robinson, Bruce. “Physician Assisted Suicide: Court Activity, Recent US Developments.” Religious Tolerance .org (1997)
http://www.religioustolerance.org/euth_us3.htm
This online essay provides a bias opinion towards assisted death. The site is that of a religious group that believes that PAS shouldn’t be legalized for moral reasons. This would be useful to either sway my opinion in the future, or provide arguments to counter. The target audience is probably those that are part of the religious group and want more information about the topic, or for people who want to get advice on whether or not it would be morally right to carry out this act on a loved one or self.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/11/24/eveningnews/main657749.shtml
I will use this site as a specific case of assisted death. This can help me to explore the future risks of having it legalized. The article reviews a case from over 4 years ago, when a woman, who was terminally ill, was assisted to death through medications. This news story is probably very widespread and most likely takes a mostly unbiased stance towards the topic. This article didn’t alter my viewpoint because it doesn’t completely take a stance.
Braddock, Clarence. “Physician-Assisted Suicide.” Ethics in Medecine. University of Washington School of Medecine (1998)
http://depts.washington.edu/bioethx/topics/pas.html
This site will help me become more familiar with terminology and different aspects of my topic. I will most likely not use quotes from it, but I can use for my knowledge. Specifically it contains the definition of the topic, my topic compared to euthanasia, and arguments in favor and against the topic. This should help me learn basic facts about the issue that I didn’t know before.
Humphry, Derek. “Tread Carefully When You Help to Die.” World Right-to-Die Newsletter #41, June 2002
http://assistedsuicide.org/suicide_laws.html
This site covers the details of a case. This site will be very useful because it views the issue in a different side than the stance then I plan to take so it will help me find arguments to counter. It is the story of an 85 years old woman who had a painful and terminal disease. This story ultimately leads to a court case involving her family who had aided in the death. This leads to the issue of legality and constitutional rights.
Miller, Franklin; Meier, Diane. “Voluntary Death.” Annals of Internal Medecine.128.7 (1998) (559-562)
http://www.annals.org/cgi/content/full/128/7/559
This site explains a method of assisted suicide, in which the patient in theory controls his/her own death. It compares and contrasts assisted suicide to terminal dehydration. I would use this information to explain the potential risks and benefits or assisted suicide, by comparing it to another method. The target audience is other doctors. Therefore the information is most likely very detailed and factual rather then opinionated and unclear.
Ontario Consultants. “Physician Assisted Suicide.” Religious Tolerance. 2007 http://www.religioustolerance.org/euth_us3.htm
This website article will be very helpful for my paper. It goes in detail about the actual court case that took place in regard to my topic; it explains the Pain- Relief Promotion Act and other acts pertaining to the topic and lastly, statistics about what physicians would do when put in potential assisted death situations. The last set of information would really help to show that the act would either be taking place anyway or on the other hand, that not one doctor would actual do it.
Board of Directors. “Physician Assisted Death.” American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine. February 14, 2007
http://www.aahpm.org/positions/suicide.html
American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine (AAHPM) believes in continuing treatment of an illness, until a patient desires to end his/her life or until he/she can take the pill by his/her own hand. This is clearly a biased article, which I could not use for facts but rather reasoning towards one side. The essay is displayed on the site of an organization which provides people with the resources for obtaining PAS. Therefore, the target audience is most likely those who are for legalizing PAS.
Quill TE, Battin MP.eds. “Physician-Assisted Dying, The Case for Palliative Care and Patient Choice.” Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2004.
This article explores the right for patient choice. It explains the actual legal rights and compares it to the constitution and present laws that are in place. The target audience is potentially those who are trying to read up on specifics about the law because it provides mostly legal facts. This article would be useful for listing facts because it doesn’t seem to be biased in way; rather it simply displays the facts. This would be useful to me when describing the issue in my first essay.
Robinson, Bruce. “Physician Assisted Suicide: Court Activity, Recent US Developments.” Religious Tolerance .org (1997)
http://www.religioustolerance.org/euth_us3.htm
This online essay provides a bias opinion towards assisted death. The site is that of a religious group that believes that PAS shouldn’t be legalized for moral reasons. This would be useful to either sway my opinion in the future, or provide arguments to counter. The target audience is probably those that are part of the religious group and want more information about the topic, or for people who want to get advice on whether or not it would be morally right to carry out this act on a loved one or self.
How is body-image culturally constructed?
Body-image is constructed based on the media. In regard to the youth, girls and occasionally boys feel the need to have the same bodies as those that are considered beautiful and healthy. Although this creates terrible issues with eating disorders such as anorexia and bolimia, there is also a flip side to the situation. Business owners and the media have so much control over what the public sees, what they want, and what is available. And because professions that take advantage of the obesity issue make so much money, many people are coming out and saying that it's okay to be obese and that loving your body will counter any negative aspects, just so the market will continue.
On a smaller cultural level, for instance, within social groups, individuals can sometimes be bias towards others of different body composition. I feel that many do not want to associate themsleves with those that are obese. I don't really have a reason for why this is true, but I'm sure that the feeling does exist.
On a smaller cultural level, for instance, within social groups, individuals can sometimes be bias towards others of different body composition. I feel that many do not want to associate themsleves with those that are obese. I don't really have a reason for why this is true, but I'm sure that the feeling does exist.
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
SWA 7
The two articles “Matters of Faith Find a New Prominence on Campus” written by Alan Finder and “Schools of Thought: The Liberal-Conservative Divide on College Campuses” written by Richard Lust, both ultimately argue that in recent years, there has been a significant increase in religious and conservative views across college campuses in the United States. Each author uses statistics, personal opinion and other researchers’ opinions to emphasize his points. Both arguments are very similar, minus the fact that Just acknowledges the fact that most statistics show that religious and conservative groups are still the minority at most schools. Also, Finder focuses on a wider range of spirituality, not just Christianity and Catholicism, but also Buddhism, Hinduism, Judaism and just a basic presence of faith. I feel that the case Finder is arguing and the argument he puts forth is more effective and supported than Just’s.
Just and Finder use examples of students reaching out to their peers and trying to spread their views. Basically, more and more minorities are trying to show their beliefs and show universities that there are students who are active minorities on campus. Finder used the research of many professors on college campuses to support his claim. They all said that there is an evident increase in spirituality and that all statistics also point towards that statement. On the other hand, Just more frequently uses his personal opinions as evidence. This is however much less effective to the audience because there isn’t any information displayed about the validity of the author’s opinion.
Just and Finder use examples of students reaching out to their peers and trying to spread their views. Basically, more and more minorities are trying to show their beliefs and show universities that there are students who are active minorities on campus. Finder used the research of many professors on college campuses to support his claim. They all said that there is an evident increase in spirituality and that all statistics also point towards that statement. On the other hand, Just more frequently uses his personal opinions as evidence. This is however much less effective to the audience because there isn’t any information displayed about the validity of the author’s opinion.
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
1. University of Washington, School of Medicine. “Physician Assisted Suicide.” http://depts.washington.edu/bioethx/topics/pas.html#ques3
2. Couric, Katie, CBS Evening News. “Issues that Divide.” http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/11/24/eveningnews/main657749.shtml
3. Miller, Franklin. Annals of Internal Medicine. “Voluntary Death.” http://www.annals.org/cgi/content/full/128/7/559
4. Ontario Consultants. Religious Tolerance. “Physician Assisted Suicide.” http://www.religioustolerance.org/euth_us3.htm
5. Board of Directors. American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine. “Physician Assisted Death.” http://www.aahpm.org/positions/suicide.html
2. Couric, Katie, CBS Evening News. “Issues that Divide.” http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/11/24/eveningnews/main657749.shtml
3. Miller, Franklin. Annals of Internal Medicine. “Voluntary Death.” http://www.annals.org/cgi/content/full/128/7/559
4. Ontario Consultants. Religious Tolerance. “Physician Assisted Suicide.” http://www.religioustolerance.org/euth_us3.htm
5. Board of Directors. American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine. “Physician Assisted Death.” http://www.aahpm.org/positions/suicide.html
Assisted Suicide Should be a Personal Choice
Those with terminal diseases, sustaining permanent brain damage, in a coma and sick with various other incurable health problems believe that they should have the right to choose to continue living or to finish their life in a dignified, painless manner. They believe that decisions about life and death are personal. However, many others disagree and believe that there is sanctity of life that needs to be respected. They say that there is a difference between killing and passively letting die, when referring to those with terminal illnesses who refuse treatment. The question is whether or not it is constitutionally correct to restrict these personal rights. Should people be able to decide the path of their own lives, or is it not their decision or right to choose?
I believe that it is the right of the person to choose whether or not he/she continues a life of suffering, or decides to participate in an assisted death. People should be able to have the choice and can then, individually decide if it is moral or not. In the most states, it is currently illegal to aide in a death or to commit suicide. The two exceptions are Oregon, where both are legal, and Washington, where only suicide is legal. I plan to discuss the constitutional rights that all individuals have to life and death. I also want to explain the importance of allowing people to decide their own morals, and the fact that they differ from person to person. The law should acknowledge personal liberties. My paper will include examples of different cases of people who have been assisted in death and those that wish to, as well as responding to any counter arguments.
I want this paper to be read by my classmates and teacher and I anticipate that many will feel very strongly against my decision. This is a very controversial and possible sensitive topic and I hope to really appeal to the emotions of my readers and open them up to both sides of the case.
I believe that it is the right of the person to choose whether or not he/she continues a life of suffering, or decides to participate in an assisted death. People should be able to have the choice and can then, individually decide if it is moral or not. In the most states, it is currently illegal to aide in a death or to commit suicide. The two exceptions are Oregon, where both are legal, and Washington, where only suicide is legal. I plan to discuss the constitutional rights that all individuals have to life and death. I also want to explain the importance of allowing people to decide their own morals, and the fact that they differ from person to person. The law should acknowledge personal liberties. My paper will include examples of different cases of people who have been assisted in death and those that wish to, as well as responding to any counter arguments.
I want this paper to be read by my classmates and teacher and I anticipate that many will feel very strongly against my decision. This is a very controversial and possible sensitive topic and I hope to really appeal to the emotions of my readers and open them up to both sides of the case.
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Smoking Ban Brainstorming
health issues (cancer)
is tobacco a drug
second-hand smoke
smoking in public areas
social acceptance
sex appeal
addiction
family history
smoking age (not very controversial)
state/national laws
is tobacco a drug
second-hand smoke
smoking in public areas
social acceptance
sex appeal
addiction
family history
smoking age (not very controversial)
state/national laws
Postsecret
My postsecret card reads, "I'm in love with a stripper." Dividing the words is an image of a stripper dancing on a pole. I was trying to think of a secret that would stand out from my other classmates' secrets, something that would catch everyone's attention. I also wanted it to really look like a card that would be seen on the website. I tried to emphasize the word "stripper" because it is the highlight of my secret. It is written in a showy font, as well as is much larger than the other words. The other words are in plain, bold text, showing that the author is not embarrassed, nor proud of his/her secret, but is indifferent. I drew the picture of the stripper because that best represents the point I was trying to get across. Everyone immediately knew what I was writing about and it probably caught attention. Some people referenced the card to the pop song that has the same lyrics, and said because of that they couldn't really take it seriously. I actually didn't even think of that song when I was creating my postsecret because I was writing as an older, maybe married man, that would most likely not even know the song.
Monday, October 1, 2007
postsecret
The author explicitly states that he/she (we'll call the author "she" from now on because gender is not determinable through the card) is happy that a certain person in her life exists. The writer implicitly implies that the individual is special to her. Also, because the creator can predict how the important person might react to the secret, "I know you might roll your eyes at this," it is inferred by the audience that the relationship between the two is close and probably long-term. The author is mostly speaking directly to the individual, but at the same time writes in a way to allow other readers to relate. It is easy to understand the words she uses and many feel something similar about special people in their lives. The nature of postsecret.com isn't to have a target audience or to even expect anyone to read the secret, but those who choose to read it, and in a way “set the creator free,” become the target audience. As for visual claims, the leaf could possibly represent the person that is being written to. The yellow leaf is amazing for its color and is seen as significant for its centered placement on the card. It is the highlight of the artwork, as the person is the highlight of the text. Overall, the entire layout is engaging and appealing.
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