First thoughts on someone else's essay

I really think this essay is off to a good start. Immediately I know which place it is that he wishes to base the rest of the essay off and I know for the most part how he feels about them. He uses two different metaphors to get this point across; two different scenarios that depict two different feelings about his place. Then he goes on to write that he neither loves or hates this place, he just does not know how to feel. It makes me intrigued to find out exactly how he feels or works out how he feels about this place since it is not entirely introduced in the first paragraph.

First thoughts on Project 3

I've beent hinking about my own draft for Project 3, and I have to tell you that I am actually extrememly underwhelmed with it. I feel like I put a lot of thought and planning into it, yet when it came down to it, I really had no idea what to say about the place. It took me a very long time to even think of a place I felt two ways about, even just remotely. Then, I did not quite understand how I was supposed to cite other peoples' work into an essay that had to do with my own experiences and feelings. I was very confused about what I was writing the majority of the time and even though I read over the criteria several times just to clarify, I'm still not particularly sure if I gave you what you were asking for in this project.

A sentence starts like...

A sentence starts like a child who has lost sight of her mother in the supermarket, longing to head in the right direction, hoping to take the right steps toward her lost sense of comfort. She must begin to move and search, standing there is not an option.

A sentence starts like cracking the eggs into a bowl, pouring the milk, all aspects before mixing the batter...

If these walls could talk, what would they say?

The arguments in this video ring out loud and clear. Students today are too adapted to the new technologies that are present in their every day life, that the traditional way of learning, i.e. sitting still at a desk, watching linear ideas presented on a board, listening to one voice (not actively taking part in the learning process), etc., just does not cut it anymore. Students growing up in today's society have almost been trained to be able to process many concepts and activities at a time, they have no choice. When they are forced to sit in a chair and watch word after word be written on the black board, whiteboard, whatever board, they are inevitably goning to wander somewhere else. They are going to see the technology in front of them and have that appetite for social networking, any other typical procrastination site, or do anything else! This video shows that if we can learn to incorporate more active learning involving the technologies which we've already adapted, students would finally receive the 21st century education for which they are putting their lives in debt. It clearly lists all of the negative aspects of the learning style still present today in order to grab the support and agreement of others.

"Rediscovering Central Asia" Reaction

The rhetorical strategies used mostly in this essay involve convincing the readers of Central Asia's once brilliance. It is to persuade the reader to gain a mindset that Central Asia still exists, though it has seemed to diminished politically and economically, and that it will forever have the potential to prosper as much as it once did. The rhetorics are used by listing all the accomplishments Central Asia is responsible reaching mostly from the maths and the sciences. The essay describes how divese Central Asia is and how many of the cultures and religions today can be accredited to Central Asia and its past inhabitants. Finally, speaking less of the past and looking more into the future, the essay discusses the students of Central Asia. They are being financially supported to study abroad and come back to Central Asia to help infuse the culture with the more modern culture which has been deemed neccessary to prosper or even just survive. There are many aspects which point to the rediscovering of and fixing of Central Asia, and they all consist of the rhetorical strategies pointing out the strenghts that Central Asia once possessed, and the potential which it still currently possesses.

This one works, this one does not.

The relevance of this video to what we are currently learning about in composition, is the different forms of writing and reading which are displayed. The video shows how far technology has stretched the means in which writing appears. For example, the little girl has become used to using the Ipad (the more modern version of writing and reading), and therefore does not understand why when she touches the magazine pages, the screen does not alter. The video makers have shown us that growing up with new technologies will continue to create generations that will reject older forms of reading and writing, as they are so easily adapted to the newer forms, i.e. the Ipad.

Relationship with my reader

The relationship with my reader is almost like a crush, as expressed in Billy Collins's "The Flight of the Reader." Every time I write with the idea of an audience or a reader in mind, I always aim to impress. It is almost as if with my writing I am trying to make my crush have a crush on me back. Depending on the type of writing that I am doing, my goal with my "crush" varies. Often times I attempt to sway the reader to feel the same way as I do, other times I just aim to let them know how I feel about a certain issue; but I am always trying to make the reader feel that my thoughts and writings are worth spending time with. Maybe I even try to make the reader think that I am something worth spending time with because of what I write about and how I express it. In any case, I see the reader as someone whose time I am taking, not the other way around. I should be so lucky that someone is reading my works and therefore, I do not wish to disappoint.

response to "Coney Island of the Mind."

While watching this short video which elaborates on someone's connection with Coney Island, I was able to sense their longing to be back there and for it to be the way it used to be. I liked the voice that read it as well because it helped to sound like this person was borned and raised around that area. There was a sense of sadness, both with the song in the background and the images which ranged mostly from the current day images of Coney Island, but also some from back when it was beautiful and prospering. There were images of the old amusement park, and it also helped to bring me back, as the audience, with the writer/ speaker to his childhood days and the good old days at Coney Island.

Country Griddle might be like...

The Country Griddle might be like the old high school cafeteria. There will always be a familiar face hidden around some corner or sitting behind some table; whether or not it's a face one desires to see or avoids at all costs. But it's not as rushed or as crowded and loud, however it is just as familiar.

The Country Griddle, New Jersey

The Country Griddle is not like a scary movie or a stranger on the side of the road. It is not like the first day of class in a new school, but it is neither waiting in line for or riding on a wild rollercoaster. It is not like a treadmill at the gym, nor is it like the gym.

The Country Griddle is not like the gym or the treadmill. It is quite the opposite. It is where one never comes alone, where one never must find their own table. One does not go there with the idea of shedding extra pounds, but rather one leaves perhaps having gained some extra pounds. One does not laugh and chat and eat whilst on a treadmill, but that is all that is done whilst at the Country Griddle. When running on a treadmill, most cannot wait until the time has run out and it is time to stop. On the contrary, at the Griddle, everyone wishes they did not have a busy schedule they have to return to; they wish they could stay and continue to have a good time in the company of good friends or family. In a literal sense, there is no monthly fee to indulge in a good time at the Griddle, that is to say the bills are the least expensive than any other diner. One is caught up in the moment with happiness surrounded by loved ones, as opposed to running on a constant wheel, in the company of strangers and thoughts. Lastly, one rarely ever leaves the treadmill desiring the next encounter, but when one leaves the Griddle, she always makes plans for the next time hoping the time passes quickly before then! The Griddle is not like the gym or the treadmill.

Home is like...

home is a place where one finds themselves surrounded by the ones he or she loves; by people in whose company they enjoy being. Home is a place a person thinks about when he wants to relax, be at peace, or even just nap should he so desire. It is also a place that a person can call his own, whether or not there are others calling it their own as well, or just him. Home can also be where a person does not anymore reside, but where he or she longs to when he longs for the utmost comfort.

Hypertext Prezi

PREZI

Chapter 3 Prezi- HYPERTEXT

Chapter 3- Hyper text

Is hypertext a more natural way to write?
With hypertext we are able to learn the way we want to learn, the way our mind is used to thinking. It allows us to take a more personal approach to reading and writing.

Chapter 2: writing Space thesis (Group 2)

Transactions, such as storytelling (without means of recording).
      Printing press
     Computer- Biggest evolution of writing
     Social networking
     News online- more extensive

Thesis:
New means of writing are just ways to enhance textual understanding.

Chapter 2; Writing Space Thesis

"Digital text refines writing as a technology."

Evolution of writing formats begins with;

Stone
Scroll
Paper and pen
Typewriter
Computer
Smart phone/ cell phone

Afraid to write as seriously as Jacques?

Often times I am very fearful or writing due to how everyone's opinions differ. I always want my main point to come across flawlessly, but at the same time I tend to be incapable of doing so. I also write mainly for classes which require a formal type of writing, with a certain criteria that must be met. Every time I write, I feel as if I need to be entertaining, be clear and thorough, be insightful, have good word syntax and sound sophisticated. It is a lot for me to try and accomplish within one writing and it is very much so overwhelming and intimidating. I do not, however, ever lose sleep over my writing and something that I have already written. This may be because writing is not something that consumes the majority of my time, like I feel it might in Jacques Derrida's life.

The Endless Possibilities of Digital Text- Argument

Argument: Digital text is the future of all text due to the many conveniences with which it provides all of society.


notes on digital text:
Ease of distribution
Capable of more than just writing
Less cost- more access
Faster communication
More personable

"This is the future of text."

Taylor Mali's Writing

The Poem differs in its two recensions in that, although you can hear the speaking in both, one requires the audience to read as well as listen. It is almost as if we are reading an audio book where the words pop up in all different directions and places. The fact that the words are not restricted to standard black-white, left-to-right horizontal format adds a certain personality to the speaking as well. A personality which differs from that which is portrayed when the audience can actually see the speaker. When we are permitted to see the speaker, we can see and hear which aspects of his writing which he wants to put further emphasis on. The writer also has the ability to act and be apart of his writing to better send the point across to us as an audience. However, there is something about the textual writing space which forces us to become more involved in the writer's work. Everything that the speaker/writer says is pushed deeper into our understanding when we are able to see what exactly he is saying, especially while he is saying it. It is almost as if, upon hearing and seeing the words, the point is automatically reiterated for us. We have no other option but to take in what he is saying, as opposed to when we are watching and may be distracted by the reader's expressions, though it is not frowned upon to include expression in one's reading as, to some, it can prove to be just as helpful in receiving an argument.