Casual Media.

"Contemporary media is encouraging children to grow up too fast."  Create a causal chain that either supports or refutes this statement. 


The contemporary media of today is not encouraging all children to grow up fast, it is targeted towards girls. Fashion has "opened" up in all kind of ways for woman if the past few decades everything is becoming more towards sex appeal. Everything has become shorter and tighter, even for guys. Younger girls see this on every piece of media they can get their hands on from television to magazines. The main problem with contemporary media and girls is that girls have a bigger need to conform then boys. Media hits this well even shows on The Disney channel have more sex appeal, and every girl wants to be like their "idols". 

ESSAY 5

Essay 5-Causal Argument/Proposal Research Essay

I would like to propose the topic of Teenage Pregnancy to write my week 5 essay on. Because of my close relationship with two teenagers; one who is at this moment pregnant, with no knowledge of who the father is," my niece"; the other a really sweet teenager," to whom is the best friend of my son", is the father of beautiful baby girl.
I am extremely interested in this topic, not only because I am close to these two teenagers, that are going through a decision that will now have an impact on their lives, "for the rest of their lives", but I would also like to try and persuade other teenagers from committing acts of immature fornication before they have achieved the means necessary for adult decisions.

Casual Argument

   The casual argument in this ad presents the idea that consumers are using a lot of fossil fuels and by doing so individuals are collectively killing the planet. The bigger cars and trucks are driven, so more gasoline is used to operate them. Petroleum, which is used to create gasoline, has to be harvested from the earth. The more humans take from the earth the faster our resources will be depleted. Once the resources are gone, the planet will die. The gun is used in the poster to represent the consumption of natural resources. The target lies on the earth, and using up the fossil fuels would be like pulling the trigger on the gun. This casual argument doesn't doesn't identify any contributory causes. The ad is focused on one cause and effect. By leaving out any possible contributory causes the argument to be not as persuasive as it could be. People might agree with economic progress killing the planet, but not with the use of gasoline.

Contemporary Media

christina vinsonchidren
June 15, 2012

Contemporary media is encouraging children to grow up to fast. The media today is stressing the point of sex, violence, and drugs.  Many of the television programs that our children watch is  influence them to be rebel against their families. Parents need to monitor the programs that the children watch. Because many shows teach that it's ok to lie cheat and steal, it makes our children feel  it's okay to do that.

Casual Arguments

Christina Vinson

What is casual arguments? Casual argument identifies the cause of an event or situation and takes a stand on what actually caused it.  Casual arguments may focus on the results or take a position on the outcome.

What does it identify as the main cause? It examine a number of diffrent possible causes before concluding that particular cause would possible be.

Does it identify contributory causes? It may make a possible cause or a result of what may possible be.

“Contemporary media is encouraging children to grow up to fast”

Contemporary media seems to encourage children to grow up to fast. If you look at contemporary media there are many things there that encourage children to grow up to fast. Everything children see today in movies, magazines and hear on the television. When children are allowed to view what ever they want whenever they want the take on the views of the things that they hear and see on television. Many of these television shows seem to encourage children to do things that they may not be ready for. Parents should be aware of what their children are watching as well as how their children view the things they see a well as whether or not their children agree with what they see on television. Although there may not be anything we can do to stop them from being exposed to contemporary media we can monitor the things that our children view and give explanations of how things really work in society and how our children should react in some of these situations. There are many things that children deem as okay for them to do because of how media portrays it that they do not realize the consequences of what can happen if they take part in these actions. Like the belief that being thin is the only thing that makes you beautiful so young girls have taken to watching what they eat and not eating healthy, as well as viewing themselves as ugly just because they are not as thin as others around them.

Facebook

What steps would you take to determine whether Elefant's information is accurate?

In order to determine if Elefant's information is accurate one should read more into the subject in which is being discussed . One should always look to see how other people's opinions on Elefant's information. People should also look for more information regarding Elefant's research, what particular works were cited in her argument and also look for an argument that may refute Elefant's opinion.

How could you determine whether Elefant is respected in her field?

If one is to determine if Elefant is respected in her field of study one would have to look for other articles that Elefant may have written and see if she takes a negative approach to all of her blogs or papers. You can usually tell how respected someone is by the tone in there essays as well as how well others react to her papers and blogs. Although I am not very sure of her abilities she seems to be well respected by many of her peers.

Is Elefant's blog written for an audience that is knowledgeable about her subjects? How can you tell?

Elefant's blog was definitely written for those who have little or no knowledge of her subjects. This is evident because she states all of her opinions or facts with evidence to support each of her claims, and she also gives basic information on her subjects for those who may not know what her research entails.

Do you think this blog is suitable research source? Why or why not?

This blog is not suitable as a research source because Elefant uses too many of her own opinions about this subject. If Elefant wanted this blog to be a suitable research source then she should have stated more fact than her own opinion. One may be able to cite a particular quote from her blog but nothing more than that.

What insights about this blog do the comments that accompany it give you?

The comments that accompany this blog give the insight that all of her readers seem to agree with Elefant. It is a blog written for people with the same type of opinions as the writer. The all seem to support her evidence, information, and claims. Which is particularly unusually.

Contemporary media is causing children to grow up fast. Children are stuck in world of electronics and have been blindsided by the glamour. Children are influenced by individuals whether it is parents, TV, and video games. Because of today's society, children are being raised by electronic or TV shows. The lost of family values and positive role models has children growing up faster. The children want to be that person ICarly, Hannah Montana, and other TV icons. Their lives look glamorous and doing inappropriate behavior without any consequences and children are learning and watching thinking that it is ok behavior. However, as parents we need to be more involved with the supervision of TV and gaming making sure that it is appropriate. Because children do what they learn or watch, it is our responsibility to insure that we are teaching family values.What ever happened to family night with board games with no distractions?

Discussion # 1         Visual Ad

Is the Economic progress killing our planet. This is a casual argument that we may be destroying the planet earth. As we carry on day by day using natural resources for daily needs, for example; person pumping gas using crude oil resources and car polluting the earth. The strong statement made with the gun pointing at the earth resembling that everyday we are destroying the planet. The use of natural resources and how they are obtained is slowly killing the planet. The population grows and the need for more natural resources causes the slow death to the planet Earth. Because we think that we are making great progress in the economic, we are not concerned about the slow death that the planet Earth is undergoing. So, are we doing any justice? Are we really making progress or destroying our planet Earth? If we continue on the same path, it is possible that the Earth will die.

CAUSAL CHAIN

 Discussion Week 5:  “Contemporary media is encouraging children to grow up to fast”

                                                            CAUSAL CHAIN

  What our children view on TV, without parental supervision, can affect the way they view the world, of what is accepted and what is not. The way in which the media display each broadcast, from commercials to the some-what innocent TV shows that we as adult think nothing of, are having a profound effect on our children’s out-look of what it is to be an “adult” without the intervention of an adult to explain the ramifications of these actions viewed, children are more or less likely to develop the wrong attitude toward life and may also develop habits that are unbecoming of the innocent of childhood.

  Many, influential concerns in the media, that parents should concern their selves in, are the way in which they are presented and ways in which the child interpret that presentation. Some examples are; a child viewing a weight lose ad, sees and hears how wonderful it is to be thin, as the male or female representative of the weight lose ad is adored by men  or females with complements of admiration. To a child, to be thin is to belong; a commercial on makeup that shows how a plain female representative can transform into a beauty within a matter of seconds. What a child see, is the wearing of makeup will give them a higher social standing among their peers; TV Shows that broadcast the acceptance of teenage parenthood, tells a child that it is OK for a teenager to have sex and that birthing a child is what to be expected while young.

   There isn’t much we can do to keep our children from being exposed to the media but with monitoring what our children view and by explanation of what they have viewed can help our children grow up at the pace in which they were meant to grow up. The causal chain to be aware of for your children are.

·         The need to lose weight.

·         Is to become social accepted among peers.

·         The wearing of makeup.

·         Is to become as an adult figure among peers.

·         Exercising sexual awareness.

·         Is to take on the responsibilities of being an adult.

It is not easy being an adult. To let our children miss out on enjoying their childhood will reflect on we the parent. As parents, it is our duty to protect our children, from the “Media” and from themselves, when it comes to interpreting the media from a child point of view.

Facebook Background Checks

What steps would you take to determine whether Elefant's information is accurate?

   In order to determine if Elefant's information is accurate I would read more into the subject at hand. I would first look at other's opinions on Elefant's information. I would also look for more information regarding Elefant's research and even look for an argument that would refute Elefant's.

How could you determine whether Elefant is respected in her field?

To determine if Elefant is respected in her field of study I would have to look for other articles that Elefant may have written and see if she has a negative approach to them. You can tell usually tell how respected someone is by the tone in there essays. She seems to be well respected by some of her peers.

Is Elefant's blog written for an audience that is knowledgeable about her subjects? How can you tell?

Elefant's blog seems to be written for those who have little to no knowledge of her subjects. She states all of her opinions/facts with evidence to support her claims, and gives basic information of her subject for those who may not know what she is talking about.

Do you think this blog is suitable research source? Why or why not?

I believe that this blog is not suitable for research source because Elefant uses to much of her bias in her sunject. One may be able to site a quote from her but nothing more then that.

What insights about this blog do the comments that accompany it give you?

The comments that accompany this blog give me insight that they agree with Elefant. It is a blog written for people with the same "bias" that she has and they all support her evidence, information, and claims.

Class Discussions

I just want to thank you all again for your hard work on your discussion posts.  I just finished going through Week 3, and I am again struck by how enjoyable your discussions are and how many interesting things you all have to say.

Thanks for making this part of my job so easy!

DP #2 week 5

Contemporary media is encouraging children to grow up to fast. This is a statement that might cause some emotion because this is what people are raising their children on. Not only is today’s media filled with inappropriate content. Today’s world is also lacking guidance and positive interacting that children need. Values have been lost and now we are facing seven year olds being sentenced to prison. Not only are our children dealing with dysfunctional families but they are also surrounded by dysfunction in the world. Children are learning more about hate than they are about loving one another. Contemporary media is also focuses on video games, smart devices such as I pads. They are learning how to surf the internet that is filled with crude comedy, pornography, violent media, and so much more information that should be kept away from a child’s mind. Instead children should be creating their own world, they should be outside exploring the beauty of nature. Children should be highly active because they are filled with energy. Today’s world does not emphasize enough the importance of making a childhood last. As a child you have a perspective that is unfamiliar to all things. All encounters should be something that makes a difference. Children need to be encouraged, inspired and taught, not just entertained.

Discussion post #1 week 5

So, what is the big question all about? Is economic progress killing the planet? The image’s casual argument is that modern development and the steps we’ve made to get so inclined is causing our planet to die. In the image you see a human hand holding a gun and it is pointed at a target which happens to be a map of Earth. The hand holding the gun is also placed in between the words killing and planet. This is emphasizing that the world has no defense against the damage we are doing to it. You also see another hand holding a gas pump and is filling up their vehicle. Oil is a natural non renewable resource (at least in our lifetime). What are we going to do when we cannot get more oil? Both of these examples pertain to the casual argument of the entire image. The progress we have made has certainly served it’s duty by producing billions of products in a short amount of time. It has also been evil to our Earth by stealing and not replacing. If the world continues be in doubt about alternative sources for sustainable living here, then something will eventually take over. The image asking to think about the ways we have succeeded, and then to question whether or not it might have been cheating.

Casual Chain

   Contemporary media is encouraging children to grow up too fast. The moral decay of society has lead to the depravity of mankind. The images and messages that are conveyed through media reflects the thoughts and feelings of our culture. As humanity continues down a path of corruption less censorship is the trend to supply the demand of humans turpitude. The world's children suffer from the desensitization that contemporary media is conveying. Thus continuing the vicious cycle of the exponentially increasing decline of the values of the human race. Through this downward spiral, technology still continues to progress with different ways to present media. New technology caters to the demand of the people. As more and more electronic devices can deliver the information in a small convenient way, children are drawn to these electronic devices that have the capability of researching more data than children should know until they get older. Desensitization has become a problem with our society. Children lack a sense of empathy because of seeing so many horrible things through contemporary media. 

Discussion post: Wikipedia page

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prometheus

I am a bit of an expert in Greek Mythology, as I have researched (and continue to research) the subject in depth. I do so because I find it very intriguing, and one of my favorite figures/stories from Greek Mythology is the story of the "kindly" Titan, Prometheus.

Wikipedia has a page on Prometheus to no great surprise, but it leaves a bit to be desired in the category of details. They simply include that Prometheus created man from clay, gave them fire he had stolen from Mount Olympus (from the Olympian gods), and was punished by Zeus by being chained to a rock with an eagle coming and tearing out/eating his liver every day. However, if proper details (according to the ancient Greek myths) are included, that is only some of the highlights of the story.

According to the Greek legends, during the "Titanomachy", or the Olympian god vs Titan war, Prometheus (also called the Titan of Forsight and the wisest of the Titans) chose to fight alongside the god Zeus and his siblings rather than fight with his fellow Titans, as he could forsee the outcome of the battle with the king of the Titans, Kronos' (also spelled Cronus) defeat. Prometheus also convinced his younger brother Epithemus (whose name means afterthought and was the most dim-witted of the Titans) to side with him and the gods. As many can guess, the Olympians won and the "Golden Age of the Titans" ended with the defeat and imprisonment in Tartarus of most of the Titans including Kronos.

Afterward, the Olympian gods ruled over the earth with Zeus as their king. During this time, Prometheus and his brother were charged with creating subjects for the gods; mortals to rule over. Wikipedia does indeed include this, but they leave out the fact that there was a caring for them from the Titan brothers. They created the mortals by fashioning man out of clay and having life breathed into them by Athena, goddess of wisdom and war. Prometheus cared deeply about his creations and was saddened by the fact that they were miserable on earth, with no means of effective hunting, seeing in the dark, or dealing with disease.

So, to help them, he stole fire from Mount Olympus and gave it to mankind, as Wikipedia does mention. Zeus, upoun seeing this, was angered and took the fire away from mankind, saying that they "were not ready" for it's power. He then forbade Prometheus from attempting to do so again. Prometheus again watched his children suffer and die, so he snuck back to Olympus in the dead of night and took fire from the chariot of Helios (the sun god) in a giant fennel-stalk and gave it back to mankind. Wikipedia also mentions Prometheus stelaing it back, and the use of the fennel-stalk, but not that the fire was from the sun and thusly would continue to burn, thus preventing Zeus from taking it away again.

Zeus saw this and was angered. He decided to destroy mankind, but Prometheus intervened. Wikipedia and other sources agree that Prometheus convinced Zeus that he should let mankind live if they offered the gods sacrifices. Zeus agreed and told Prometheus to prepare the sacrifice. Prometheus then slaughtered a great ox and, splitting it's remains in two, placed the halves on two seperate altars. One altar had the bones of the ox with it's glistening fat covering them. The other had all of the good meat, hidden under/within the ox's smelly stomach.

When Zeus appeard to see his offering, Prometheus offered him his pick of the two. What Wikipedia leaves out here is that Zeus was tricked. He only saw the disgusting stomach and the glistening white fat. So he chose the latter, thinking it amusing that Prometheus "left out" the meat mankind ate to survive. But when Prometheus releaved that Zeus had taken only the bones and fat, leaving mankind the good meat, Zeus was furious.

What Wikipedia leaves out of Zeus' wrath is that he first punished Prometheus by having Hephaestus, the god of blacksmiths and fire, chain Prometheus to a great rock where he would spend eternity until the earth ended and all of the earth crumbled into Tartarus. And, seeing as Prometheus was immortal, Zeus then decried that when the world had ended and been reborn, Prometheus was to be (as Wikipedia does mention) chained back to the rock. Zeus then ordered Hephaestus to make a great eagle of bronze to come to the rock every day and eat the poor Titan's liver knowing that, since Prometheus was immortal, it would grow back every night so that the bird could return again every day.

Eventually, as Wikipedia and the legends all agree, the Greek hero Heracles (Hercules in the Roman translation) came to Prometheus and, seeing the punishment the Titan bore, felt it was unjust and freed the Titan, killing the bird and breaking the chains with his added immense strength.

Over all, Wikipedia did an alright job of re-telling the ancient story, but it could certainly have used more detail. This more-filled account here even leaves out Prometheus' knowledge of a prophecy he kept from Zeus and the story of Pandora, the first woman with her dowry jar (or box) of miseries and demons.

Discussion Week 5

              DO EMPLOYERS USING FACEBOOK FOR BACKGROUND CHECKS FACE LEGAL RISKS       

                                                                                                                                By Carolyn Elefant

Q1. What steps would you take to determine whether Elefant’s information is accurate?

The first steps, in which I would take in order to determine whether Carolyn Elefant’s information was accurate, would be to do a follow up on her information with a research of my own. This would include researching the sites in which Elefant had listed in her blog as supportive references to her claim, than comparing them to my own findings and evaluate each fact stated, to the information in which I find.

Q2.How could you determine whether Elefant is respected in her field?

The way, in which I determined that Elefant was respected in her field, was by interpretation of her earnestness in the way she openly considered the prying of employers into their employee’s social networking profile to be one of interest, as long as the employer make his intent known to the applicant during the interview process and that this intent would be in no way a determining factor into the applicants decision for employment.  

Q3. Is Elefant’s blog written for an audience that is knowledgeable about her subjects? How can you tell?

Elefant’s blog was written for an audience that has little to no knowledge about her subjects to which is acknowledged in the way Elefant blog was written in an informative manner, giving to the reader information to question and facts to research in order to better equip their understanding of employer/employee relationship.

Q4. Do you think this blog post is a suitable research source? Why or why not?

I think this blog posted by Elefant does indeed make a suitable source for research, not only is the blog filled with important and informative information, Elefant’s point of delivery is very persuasive at gaining the interest of the reader to seek further knowledge on the subject.

Q5. What insights about this blog post do the comments that accompany it give you?

The insight I get from the accompanying comments posted in response to Elefant’s blog, is that some of the viewers had knowledge of Elefant’s subject and was willing to share that knowledge in support of Elefant’s blog by strengthening her research through research of their own along with their understanding of the social networking of Facebook in concern to employer/employee relationship.

     

Analyze the ad

With global warming starting to set in more and more, the only thing we can blame is our government and ourselves. With the government building and destroying our land and nature, it is causing a lot of problems for our planet. We were expected to not live past this year due to everything that we have done to pollute the earth. The more buildings that are built, the less land we have for our nature resources to come from and we are surely running out. Since they are desperate for a quick buck, everything is being made cheaply whether or not it harms the planet. As long as they get paid, they don't care. Oil spills, gas leaks, cars letting out fumes and smoke, trash building up on roads and things that are made that are not easily broken down to get rid of. Trash companies burning trash and polluting our air with the ungodly smell or trash and smoke. Chemical being made that kills the very things that make our world go round. Last I heard, the atmosphere is getting quite thin and will soon sprout a hole which will slowly kill everything we don't appreciate at this point in time till it is gone. This ad say a lot just by a couple of words and a few pictures. It truly means a lot to the people willing to understand it and possibly do something about it. Soon we will all die and this ad will be an "I told you so" memorable statement.

Do employers using facebook for background checks face legal risk?

1. What steps would you take to determine whether Elefant's information is accurate?

Well just by reading it you can tell that she has a survey that was conducted which helps with an explanation. If you know facebook then you should know how it runs. There are also comments posted by people who included their thoughts on it and they are all agreeing with her.

2. How could you determine whether Elefant is respected in her field?

By reading the comments. A lot of good things about her and everyone agrees with her speech.

3. Is Elefant's blog written for an audience that is knowledgeable about her subjects? How can you tell?

Yes. I can tell by the way it is written. She explains her theory as if she is speaking to a crowd of people who have profiles on facebook. She expects that her readers have a profile or else they wouldn't be reading her blog. If they don't then it is quite easy to find out more about facebook just by going on there and looking up a random person.

4. Do you think this blog post is a suitable research source? Why or why not?

Depending on what exactly you are researching, yes. It has fact as well as opinions and I believe when you research something that pertains to someones life, (Getting a job in this case), then you need the opinion of people who have or are going through the experience in order to get a better understanding of what is going on. You can't determine everything in life by research only, you need the opinion of the victims whether it's good or bad.

5. What insights about this blog post do the comments that accompany it give you?

That the author is well liked and respected. A lot of people seem to agree with her ad thank her for posting it. They also add their opinion which help in the researching part.

Discussion post: Wiki page

Wikipedia pages have a habit of being misleading or having bits of information that is untrue, that is why it is always important to check the reference section of each page. Although, it seems that if it is a high profile page, such as a professional sports team, the errors are kept to a minimum or having no errors at all. One page like that is the Tampa Bay Lightning page.
The Tampa Bay Lightning are an NHL team out of Tampa, FL. Their wiki page is spot on accurate from the provided franchise history, color commentators, franchise records, and to the current roster.
Being a rather obsessive fan of the team myself I have gone over the history of the team multiple times and it is safe to say that all of it is here. They detail the team’s formation accurately and continue that accuracy all the way up to the present day in the history section.
The miscellaneous information, such as the commentators, stations games are carried on, mascot name, etc are also very accurate.
The provided roster is up to date as well as the list of former captains, record holders, award recipients, first round draft picks, and individual franchise leaders.
They even have an accurate list of all the NHL awards the team has won as well as the individual NHL awards individual players have won during their tenure with the team.
The entire wiki page for the Tampa Bay Lightning is incredibly accurate and there isn’t an error to be found in the entire entry.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tampa_Bay_Lightning

Discussion Post: Analyze the Ad

The argument the ad is proposing is that economic progress may be harming or killing the planet. There is some basis to the argument as the more advanced civilization becomes and the larger the population becomes it will need access to a larger quantity of scarce resources.
The main one it hints at in the ad is oil. The picture of someone filling their car up at the gas pump makes people think about oil and how it is indeed a scarce resource. It can be replenished but scientists aren’t fully sure on how long it actually takes for natural crude oil to form in the Earth’s crust.
Another image that is shown in the ad is one of a handgun. It is mainly used to symbolize the killing of the Earth as it’s pointed at a map but it also subtly refers to heavy metals. Guns are made up of various combinations of heavy metals such as aluminum, steel, and iron. These are all resources that are found naturally on Earth, but much like crude oil, it takes an indeterminable amount of time for them to actually form naturally. Other things that are made with these materials are cars, buildings, phones, computers and certain kinds of appliances. The larger the planet’s population becomes the more the demand for these resources will rise meaning the scarcer they will become. The scarcer the resources become the more mining companies will dig or mine to find them causing more damage to the planet as a whole.

Agenda Week 5

Practical Argument Readings:

• Chapter 8: “Evaluating Sources” (219-247)
• Chapter 13: "Causal Argument" (353-383)

Presentations:

• "Introduction to Causal Argument" (University of Louisville)
• Tyree Library - "Accessing Library Databases from Off Campus"

Resources:

"Evaluating Sources" (Lakeland Community College)
Tyree Library - "Finding Articles"
Tyree Library - "Is It a Popular Magazine or a Scholarly Journal"

Discussion Questions:

• Post links here to two sources about the same subject - one bad, one good.  Use the accuracy, credibility, objectivity, currency and comprehensiveness criteria to explain how you evaluated each source.
• As you probably know, most instructors (including me) discourage students from using Wikipedia as a source of information.  (Though I should note that the links in the footnote and resource sections at the bottom of the page are usually great sources of information.)  Read "The Top Ten Hoaxes in Wikipedia's First Ten Years" and then set out to find a Wikipedia page on a subject you know a lot about.  Post a link to the page here and assess the page's accuracy.
• Read "Do Employers Using Facebook for Background Checks Face Legal Risk" (PA 244-46).  Answer the five discussion questions that accompany the reading.
• Analyze the ad at the end of this section.  What is its causal argument?  What does it identify as main causes?  Does it identify contributory causes?
• "Contemporary media is encouraging children to grow up too fast."  Create a causal chain that either supports or refutes this statement.

Assignment:

Essay 5, due Monday, June 25 at 11:59 pm.
The assignment sheet will be posted to the Lessons page of Angel as Essay 5: Causal Argument - Research.

Remember that your essay must be posted before midnight, or the dropbox will close.

Essay 4

Hi All,

I hit a couple of major roadblocks this weekend and, as a result, probably will only have about half of the essays returned tonight and the remainder tomorrow.  As a result, I would like to give you one more day to finish your essay.  That means the essays won't be due until tomorrow - Tuesday - at 11:59 pm.  You may, of course, post them earlier, but that is now your deadline.