Obesity?

Well, I don't know about you but this sure seems like a confusing piece of writing. I went and did a little research and found out that this article was part of a special issue on obesity -- that means that the whole issue was dedicated to this one subject. Perhaps this piece made sense in its context, but I found it a bit strange and confusing in its current place. I kept feeling like I was missing key details about the debate. I had no idea, for instance, that there even WAS a debate about obesity as an "epidemic". I actually thought that obesity was a pretty bad problem we have here in america (I think the author said something about 1 in 12 of us are morbidly obese? What is that, like almost 11 million people?). I don't know about you, but flu pales in comparison to the army of truly fat folks that become sick because of their excessive weight. What strikes me about this article is the way it tries to shock and disturb us over and over with statistics and quotes. What is worse, these shock factors throw us off the main point of the article, which is (I think) that a vast majority of Americans are not terribly obese, in actuality, and that the "obesity epidemic" is a thing cooked up by the diet industry to get everyone dieting. Not everyone needs to diet, nor should everyone. Just eating healthy meals and moderate exercise, even when you are slightly "overweight" cuts down on many of the diseases that doctors claim are due to obesity. Sigh. Oh well. Better luck on our next essay.

Weisman Article in BASW

"Earth without people" -- I really liked this article. Why? Why did I like this article? I was initially impressed with the series of questions in the first paragraph, the appeal to my curiosity and the nod to a popular worry: how human lifestyles are destroying the planet.

Further, I wanted to read on to find out how Earth might look without us. I felt sad when I learned about the many large mammal species we have squeezed out of existence in the US. A lot of it seemed sort of like common sense, though. Even now trees and weeds destroy our roads and sidewalks. Weather cracks our concrete and wears out our homes, roofs need replacing, wood siding needs refinishing,driveways need repaving. Nothing lasts forever without human intervention.

It was interesting how long he thought dams would last, and certain structures, like Hell's Gate Arch might last 1000 years.

How come we trust Weisman? What special qualification does he have to report these facts and make them believable? I should take a look at his bio. He also used a number of experts on different structures and on nature. Very interesting overall.

What is a rhetorical situation...and why do I need to know about it?

Ah, the rhetorical triangle. What is my purpose? How do I determine that? Who is my audience? Reader, Writer, Purpose: It is these three things that make up your rhetorical triangle. All these factors must be taken into account. Almost makes you want to quit while your ahead. The important thing is to realize that you know most of these things already, you just might not've defined them "out loud" to yourself. In terms of our assignment, the rhetorical analysis, you want to try on these three lenses as you look at your journal article. That is, who is this person trying to reach? WHo is the typical reader? Who is the writer trying to make him/herself oout to be for the reader (how is s/he trying to create the feeling that s/he is qualified to write this paper)? What is the overall aim/purpose of the paper? Once you answer these basic questions (and you can find out some of the ways to recognize the answers in our readings online), you are on your way to performing a more detailed rhetorical analysis.

To quote is to take text directly from the source. "The important thing is to realize that you know most of these things already." (Shannah's Reading Journal, published 10/9/07)

To paraphrase is to restate a thought in your own words, keeping to about the same length as the original. Everyone knows, even if they don't, that reader, writer and purpose are important when writing. (Shannah's Reading Journal, published 10/9/07)

To summarize is to condense what you've just read into a far shorter and less detailed, yet accurate, account. "An Overview of the Rhetorical Situation" tells us that writer, reader and purpose are necessary parts of all writing projects. THe author goes on to describe various kinds of purposes, including objective, persuasive and expressive ways of writing, and defines each by discussing some ways of creating each kind of writing.

Well, not a very lovely summary, but a summary all the same. Gah! Time's up!

What I found most interesting p.31-52

Have you ever read something so ponderous and overbearing you think to yourself, "What kind of lame a-hole wrote this garbage -- and why do I have to make sense of it??" Well, I can tell you that, after many years of education, there are those people who know they're smart and have something worthwhile to say, and there are those who know they have nothing to add and therefore must make themselves sound important by bloviating about, oh, sociology, let's say. This kind of thing happens all the time in academia, especially in folks just starting out in a given discipline. IE refers to this problem as "academic wordiness disease" and a more apt term I never did see. I try really hard to emphasize to my students that what they have to say is really worthwhile -- really! -- and they don't have to make their prose "sound more academic" or more mature by throwing in a bunch of polysyllabic jargon or big words. Simple question to ask yourself: why utilize when you can simply use? I like to keep this little statement in mind as I write: "Think about what you mean and your writing is likely to be clear and natural; think about how you sound and you are likely to start adding words to 'sound more educated'" (39).

For the analysis assignment this chapter is great, because it clues you in to what you're looking for in a good scientific report. Especially pp. 42-50 -- these pages provide an excellent template, a whole range of things that most scientific reports ought to contain. You ought to be seeing these journal articles in a whole new light after reading through this chapter and then looking at your article. I can't wait to see what other people found enlightening, interesting or awful about this reading.

EI reading pp1-29

Wow -- objectivity, situation, academic community, observational lens... there are so many things to think about! The question is, how do I become a real, contributing member to the academic community? Do I want to join this club, even? Will I be able to apply what I learn here to my job outside the university? If I take the time to learn the discourse of my area of study, am I limiting my ability to communicate well with others, outside?

Reading this material from the perspective of someone who has done undergraduate and graduate work at the university, AND as someone who has worked as a professional writer, I can safely say that most of the writing I did for my classes I did for the sake of learning the academy. Did it help me in my professional life -- of course, since I had to adapt to a number of different disciplines in my academic career. I learned a certain mental agility -- the ability to adapt my writing to the situation -- oh, and the ability to recognize various situations... First priority? Assess the needs of my audience. Second? Learn about what I need to write about. In my experience as a science writer, those are the important steps I have to take to do my job well. The benefits of a science writing course as I see it?

learn to assess your situation
learn how to write in various genres
learn to stay flexible and adaptable as you write
learn how to apply your knowledge of science/technical subjects

I learned these things myself, and it has made me a much better writer, a much more valuable employee, since I can think my way through a writing dilemma without much outside guidance. Oh, time's up! So much more to say about objectivity and all the rest. I guess we'll get to that in class!