Paper Tigers

How could a poem about a molecule be made interesting? I looked down at my scratch pad and saw some strained lines about the structure of dopamine. I stared at it until the words turned into fuzzy squiggles, which turned me off to the idea at start.

I enjoy interpreting art--the eureka moment of understanding what the author envisioned, but this makes tending my own poetry seem a dingy slogging task. Seeing my own unfinished product: unwinding the tangled phrases, contemplating rhyme, planning meter and verse. All of these feel like unsightly things reserved for a janitor.

Truly, the most painful part of art is beginning it. While the pen rode over the parchment, I lost track of time, and even when I met a clearing where my poem took a final form, I wanted more. I wanted to feel the pain that marks perfection. So, I spent the night awake, sparring with the English language, forcing it into something closer to what I wanted. This time spent "in the zone," is something I never regret.

Assignment 3: Class Feedback

This was very helpful for me. For public speaking, like any other abstract medium containing creativity, where there is limitless potential for improvements, it is very nice to have some comments to guide what is strong (and worth keeping) and the things that ought to be added. I hope to work to be more relaxed, and be more expressive and engaged with the audience. Since some of my original guidance came from the Toastmasters suggestions and methods, I plan on visiting one of their local chapter meetings and using it as a forum for practice.

Sounding Board: A Case for More than Internal Dialogue

There is a blind side to human nature to trust the self and exclude all other facts. The topic I want to cover is about how the most excellent thinkers have an external check on this, another individual or group that they consult, even as they go through the formulating process. An example that illustrates the effect of this is one most students will be able to relate to. Lets say that there's a report due this Thursday and one of the students of this class is worried that he might forget it on his way to class. He decides that the appropriate thing to do is to TAPE the report to the doorknob, making it impossible to forget the detail of keeping this among his class materials. This is similar to setting up thought checking, explaining your ideas to another to make sure they are feasible and hold up under scrutiny. This is something the rational mind would set up based on past experience.

The real life prospect of this was best shown in Albert Einstein's first set of published works. For each of his first five proposed scientific theories, the prenatal development came while walking through the countryside along a railroad track with his friend, Besso. Although Besso was another patent-office worker and not filled with a profound understanding of physics, he would accompany Einstein on these walks and listen to his theories, trying to understand by asking questions. The challenges he posed were answered by Einstein to great effect, and resulted in the publishing of Einstein's first five works, the so called "Annus Mirabilis Papers." Even though Besso had no degree in physics, and contributed no specific theories of his own, Einstein had the mind to thank him in all of these papers. Besso's patience, efforts, and inquisitiveness had driven forward Einstein's progress.

Writings: Influence on opinion

If you were one of those trying to glean details about a candidate's policy from television broadcasts or journalism, it was not easy to sift through hype and pathos to get to any logical arguments. That is why, for this election day, I took some time to educate myself about two issues that I felt had the most sway: economic and health care policy. The things I found in a library search and skimming long articles changed my opinions from my basic intuition and biases, and made me see how influential writings can change ideals of others.

At start I had been under the influence of authors and proponents of "Objectivism", taking a lot of stock(pun not intended) in the idea of growth as the ultimate and interminable economic goal. The only examples I believed government regulation was relevant were the cases of unmanageable and necessary community goods (things that cannot be charged for i.e. air, water sunlight). I felt that business should not be limited by regulations controlling their decisions for competition, and that the wealthy should be allowed any reward they could glean from a market. I saw earnings as the reward for innovation, and as soon as you disallow these takings, you would destroy what compelled entrepreneurs to innovate. These ideas had been romanticized and colored in fairly well, and I thought they were safe grounds.

In reality things are much different. The world is full of limited commodities, and growth cannot be endless in the short term. As long as we are all restricted to the confines of this one earth, theories expressed by economists don't necessarily make themselves practical or visible. One such example I studied in detail is the "trickle down" concept. In theory, the value added to the wealthiest in an economy should impel these people to start or fund business ventures. The sum result of this would be creation of jobs, and a means for the poor to support themselves. In an outlined argument, I consulted some statistics from other smaller capitalist countries (made more ideal for study by their size), and the schism between this theory and reality was undeniable. For every $100 added to an economy, it was visible that only $0.60 made its way to the poorest 10% of the population. In addition, in the United States average factor of difference in salary between the lowest income employee of a fortune 500 company and the top executive is over 500. To compare this to other institutions, colleges and universities usually operate on a scale of 10-20 different pay grades. This figure of 500 becomes an unfathomable amount when considering the applied needs of any individual. It is no longer a reward scale, but a dull number. Judging by figures, this wealth cannot naturally diffuse or spread as intended, concentrating itself instead in the nests of the wealthy.

My bit of research also included the medical field and nationalized health care. Our current system is one of comprised of both insurance companies as well as hospitals competing for customers by offering the lowest price, and building of reputation, . With the examples nationalized health care systems of Canada and the UK, there is a good basis for comparison. Nationalized systems have a whole different set of systems motivating them. These systems are effectively granted a monopoly in trust, and are allotted a certain amount to meet their yearly needs. With these limits, the objective of many becomes cutting costs, while meeting the standards of regulation. It can become difficult to regulate these things through inspection or patient activism because of the volume of cases that pass through a hospital. Still, as an aside I believe providing children health insurance is a step that is needed, as they are not yet capable of providing this for themselves or deciding whether it is prudent.

My results came down pointing to different candidates. Truly we can become a compilation of contradictions in our lives, but the aim should be to grow. With my research done, I ventured to cast my ballot cast for Obama. I felt uncomfortable, uncertain, but hopeful. The future is never certain.

Essay Feedback Response

The criticism on the essay was very helpful.  It did express a lot of what I have felt and heard before about my writing, but wasn't ready to deal with.

From all of it I have a few new goals/resolutions to put to work

- stay away from ambiguous language

- provide more concrete examples and illustrations

- prune away ideas that could distract from the purpose of the writing

- create clear divisions between points

- summarize after illustrating or tangents

Writing and Oration

It seems worth finding ways to make the skills learned in writing more applicable to other realms. By comparing and contrasting writing with other skills, you could come up with new ways to apply it.  Naturally, skill in writing would transfer most completely in the arena of language.

Both writing and oration take the general form of "language" but there are many distinctive qualities to each which overlap and contrast.  While oration was forbearer to any ink on paper, it is true that quality writing is the precursor to good oration.  The differences between the two are most distinct in how they are perceived, and the way thoughts become language.

Writers are situated with a barrier of space and time between themselves and their audience.  This means that writers may give as much thought to a point or idea as they wish, but must bridge information to an audience that is not present. Because of this quality of time available, the reader naturally expects some depth and completeness of ideas, and can be put off by repetition of ideas.  Oration differs by how the thoughts are collected beforehand and committed to memory.  From there, each idea must be recalled after a point is made. Additionally, information is conveyed very rapidly through speaking. Because of this and the varying attention in an audience, repetition of ideas is a key feature to success in oration, not a failing.

 A writer has his thoughts committed to a page, and those concepts may as well be imbued in granite as they cannot tailor themselves to the mood or attentiveness of the pair of eyes that scan it.  Contrastingly, an orator may take cues from his audience.

The Ideal Essay

A good essay is like a performance.  There is a presentation of stage and a predominant voice that steps forward. The title or text might play out over any topic but that is still only the stage. The topic of any written text formed by some internal perspective, and what is most common between strong essays is visible character of an author's view. Still, an author need not inject himself by means of the personal pronoun "I." An essay in this aspect is most likened to a steeping tea. The ingredient that promotes flavour has left the mix, but its character is indirectly observed - an author might put energy into the topic, but it is still only boiling water if left without spice.

For my project essay to bridge the gap it needs a catching subtle infusion of character, a better display of the questioning and struggling that arrives at its theme, and more airs of dialogue, less a scientific form(a bit of divine intervention couldn't hurt).

Response: Research proposal feedback

The review helped most because it identified places where elaborated points didn't follow the intended structure, and revealed places that need elaboration for clarity.

Also, I feel more comfortable about placing the Problem section earlier in my essay.

The questions about the logistics of the method were well posed, and will help as I revise this for my portfolio.

On a side note, the way the comments were laid out was perfect!

Writing: More than syntax and mechanics

The importance of quality writing is not a value adequately conveyed in high schools. It is a skill downplayed in importance, called on casually. In reality, there are few things used so ubiquitously as language, and if the fundamentals for good writing are present, other valuable skills such as oration are naturally improved. Like most learned skills, development can be divided into phases of artistic growth.

 The first of these phases would be building an artistic pallate to begin working with: sampling and absorbing vocabulary, syntax, and ways of expressing basic ideas. The second would be emulation of style seen within writings of others. And the third might be seen as the end to borrowing and the creation of new original literary devices. This often includes adoption of a well-defined personal style. In truth, these developmental "phases" are more like interlinked and unending cycles, which must be consistently employed and maintained. 

With a multitude of skills, advances in capability appear to come in specific cycles.  There is movement between bright points of advancement, where new capabilities are discovered and made usable, contrasted with droughts from visible advancement, where practice feels ineffective or begins wandering. On reflection, my own writing hasn't advanced beyond the second phase earlier mentioned.These days I feel as though I'm in a wandering cycle, where practice makes invisible gains in progress. To advance from where I stand I need an inside look at the evaluation process, so that I can figure my own methodologies for self-evaluation.

If you would, let me know what kinds of practice best advances your progression as a writer.

Essays made essays

Essays are generally reviewed as relatively short pieces of prose about a particular theme or issue. In these works are concise analyses or interpretations of the author's observations or direct experiences.

Both Annie Dillard's and Gay Talese's accounts provide brightly fitting examples for this definition of an essay. In "The Stunt Pilot" Annie's comparative interpretation only injects itself after an immersive setting is displayed. "Ali in Havana" opens similarly, with an exposition of the scene.

Annie Dillard manages to compare the spatial artistry of motion by stunt-plane to the more conventional arts - the working pen, or a builting musical phrase - without seeming at all overly-ostentatious or presumptive. She again plays with interpretation when she provides the perspective of the ground swatting at a Rahm's performance. These concise comparisons anchor her work.

Gay Talese barrs no harsh details, as he relates his stay with Ali. The tension is captured, the stilted bouts of interrogation transcribed, and the playful magic of a legend is made real by his partially narrative account. Some interlude for explanation, and editorializing is included, but this remains an essay as it stays true to fact.

The fact that these are individual's own accounts, their perspectives translated to prose, is another detail that clarifies the works as essays.

("Silent dancing" not available for review)

Fun Fact

There has been suspicion about the role of the hormone vasopressin affecting monogamy in humans ever since high doses were observed to change normally promiscuous prarie voles into strictly monogomous mates. Now, it seems that genetics in men determines how strongly each of us responds to this effect of vasopressin, determining whether we show serious commitment-phobia or devotedness. One specific gene in particular, labeled RS3 334, was linked directly to "couple bonding."Subjects with multiple copies of this gene showed greater likelihood of having marital crisis or being unmarried. 

It sounds as if in the not too distant future, women could tell whether a man is huband material just by taking a peek at his genome. 

Careful where you leave your DNA fellas,  for a couple weeks pay she could take it to the lab and label you a cheat.

About: sleep

How is it that this state of inactivity or sloth pervades the animal kingdom? Wouldn't it be more evolutionarily advantageous to be active all the time? Couldn't an organism find a better meal, mate more often, and avoid predation more effectively if its waking hours were increased by a third or more? In retrospect, this primal need has affected my week in a most unpleasant way, causing me to go comatose while in the middle of doing things that require absolute focus. So, because of this, I have dredged up a number of articles in relation to the mystery of sleep, its purpose, and how to deal with its effects.

One article from the New Scientist summarises scientific hypotheses on why sleep is necessary, and why it can even result in death if some are forced to go without it. One commonly accepted hypothesis is that sleep is a way of "conserving energy" while darkness predominates and there is nothing useful to be done. Still, the energy savings of this sluggish period are relatively minimal,  for a human it is something on the order of 200 calories saved.

Still, another examined hypothesis is that sleep is a mechanism for recycling chemicals in the architecture of the brain. It is suggested that this down-time allows for neurons to reset their chemical balances for another round of a day's work.

Last, there is something to be said for sleep's potential as a survival strategy. Some zoologists and naturalists believe that sleep is very effective at keeping an organism out of trouble. Still, in our modern lives it may lead to the exact opposite!

There is much more, but that's all I have time for

Site Visit and Interview

Most generally, there are three factors that a restaurant is judged by; namely, these criteria are quality of food, ambiance, and service. During my site visit at Gillie's I had the chance to record all of these things among others. The first thing of note was the atmosphere - a unique melding of local arts and vintage artifacts. Service came served as a side of character, with each of the workers seeming to be in an intense kind of play. Lastly, the food was spectacular, and after indulging in some Nori Encrusted Tofu I don't think my Tech dining dollars will be seeing much use.

Though I sat down for my interview with Noah Gillie, the head chef, I felt as if I was having an interview with the collective staff, as others helped keep him honest on facts of history and let him know when something was still up for debate. His answers to questions almost always led to a good story. What, stood out was how uniquely balanced he (and all of the staff) seemed while I contained expectations for radical motivators to freewheeling change. When I conducted my interview, I tried to avoid all-encompassing philosophical questions that could've broken the flow of the interview. I now wish I had taken the risk on some points, or primed my source with questions beforehand. Still, I'm quite satisfied with what I found.

Course Goals

Things I would like to bring away with me from this course:

1. I would like to be able to work throught the drafting/writing process more quickly.

2. I want to expand my understanding of various writing styles and their appropriate use.

3. Improvements in clarity and brevity through vocabulary.

Interview Questions

Closed Q's

Do you mind if I use an audio recorder during our interview?

How long ago did you begin a vegetarian diet?

When did you start hosting a venue for local musical groups?

Would you serve or eat meat produced by a laboratory process?

Did public figures influence your decision to become vegetarian?

Who in particular?

Open Q's

What influenced you to decide to make a change to vegetarianism?

Have you recommended this to friends since?

Why Blacksburg?

What was it like starting your business?

Who helped/showed interest?

For you personally, is your diet choice morally or health motivated?

How would you typify the customer this resturant appeals to?

Would you consider yoursely an activist?

What do you feel gives your business appeal/vitality?

How would you like to see your resturant affect the lifestyles of people?

Activity observation: Dancing

This Saturday it rained. On a rainy Saturday people typically keep indoors and play cards, do laundry, or watch people playing football in the rain on television. In reflection on my weekend, I must tell you, typical can be preferable. On this same day fifty years ago my grandparents took their wedding vows, and for this fated day they wanted to do something special. Naturally, they got out their list of friends and invited the lot of them for a party. The complication wasn't necessarily the rain but the fact that my grandpa has a absolutist philosophy of three ideals: doing things his way, being stubborn, and never giving in.

An Uncle of mine had arrived early to take up the job of party supervisor, and promised that my Grandpa would have the afternoon free to enjoy his guests. He was somewhat right. With ample parking prepared for a state fair, the needs of our thirteen guests were well met.

I had an outpost at a table under one of the five tents, serving drinks. From there I hoped to take notes on what people were up to, while still being somewhat useful. There were three main groups that coalesced, each around a different activity. There was a band hired to play country tunes for the afternoon, and some of the guests picked up dancing. While I could see three men evade the scene and escape down into the basement for a few games of pool, most of the crowd remained on the dance floor. Lastly, there was a group of youngsters that had discovered the gigantic mud puddle engulfing the front lawn.

I could see that the adults near the band were somewhat anxiously mingling. They seemed uncertain as they talked amongst themselves in front of the dance floor. Originally the plan was for the band to be stationed outside on a stage. Instead the band was playing loudly for the small arena they had been bunched into. Because of the roaring guitars, it was obvious every time the guests would speak to one another. They would lean dangerously far inward to each other, and one would have to practically devour the other's ear to get across a simple greeting. Circles of talk would form, but people never shifted once they got settled in one of the groups, save running over to visit me for a drink. Soon, the atmosphere pushed two persons into the dance floor while others looked on. The pair did a sort of two step to the music, and it was not long before the others were joining in, comfortable that it could not be that difficult.

Most of my attention was absorbed by the youngsters around the lawn puddle. They had started dance long before any of the adults, jumping up and down and squealing occasionally. Each had a sticky handful of mud and was flinging it at the others without reservation. All were very vocal, some making words with the noise. The only intermission came when an unsuspecting golden lab ambled over to where they were playing and became the object of attention. At one point, one of the kids haphazardly slid into the mud-puddle and began to wail. The first one to help was another kid, running into the slippery mess, and pulling him up by the arm. The boy's mom ran over to help, but the incident was taken care of before she could lay hand on the child.

How Do You Know Those Things You Know?

There were moments when questions of this activity brought us to really quiet contemplation. Still, once thoughts solidified into words, we found each other agreeing quite a bit. Here are a few things we talked about.

-We believe something to be true when we experience it, patterns emerge, or it becomes testable.

-Otherwise, we believe things to be true by others' accounts or enlist our biases to simplify things.

-Descriptions can provide convincing evidence.

-Popular opinion will not change fact.

-Experts will never get airtime when they agree.

-The facts are unchanging, but our understanding and interpretation is never complete.

Communities - Latest Thoughts

The concept of community holds a lot of connotations. There are few words I associate closely with community: Rallying, interacting, sharing, & informing.

A few groups made the cut off my brainstorming list.

-Artist cooperatives

-Toastmasters

-Vegetarian/vegan community

-Conservation groups

-Open-source community

-Calligraphy groups

-Cycling groups

Hopefully some research into these collections of enthusiasts will narrow down what's practical.

Stand Back, I'm Going to Try Blogging

I claim this little square of space on the Internet in the name of English 1204H.

From this point as base camp alpha, I will work my keyboard and provide somewhat ridiculous blurbs about abstract ideas and some of my innermost thoughts.

On the second order of business, I'm brainstorming the "community" topic. So far, I am drawn toward exploring how communities present themselves to others and associate themselves with symbols.