Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Assignment 14

     Reflection has been a part of our class since day one in mi mind. We are constantly reading material and digesting it to its smallest parts and reflecting on the content. The process of digesting and reflecting can help us better understand readings because it helps you be a better critical thinker. I have gained many things by learning how to reflect in this class. When you are able to reflect you can evaluate your own writing and find purpose to it. I have gained many insights in this class for example i have learned to constantly relate my points to my main topic to keep the reader on my train of though. Also i have learned that you must treat your reader as a person that knows nothing about what your are writing about assume nothing about your readers and be as thorough and detailed (when needed) as possible. You always want to keep in mind your topic as you write. Refection can help you write better papers because they give you insight into your own mind making it easier to write.

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Assignment 12

      One of my main sources will be a book by Eric Schlosser: Fast food nation the dark side of the all-american meal. He is a well respected investigated journalist. He provides a lot of insight from a neutral stand point trying only to provide facts and let the story unfold on its own. In his book he has several quotes that shed light on marketing schemes of fast food. He also exposes fast food mal practices and un ethical behaviors. Schlosser also talks about the impacts none fast food consumers suffer as a repercussion of fast food. Another book i found to use in paper is McDonald behind the arches, by john f love. This book offer insight on Mcdonalds day to day operations and how they have manage to become the largest of all fast foods. along with statistical data i will try to expose fast food as the virus that it is. It has infected the united states and threatens to infect the world.

Thursday, November 3, 2011

Revision Reflection

    The feedback process was very useful to me. I learned a  handful of things that i will definitely consider in revising my paper. I learned that some of my ideas need to be directly connected to my thesis so that the reader does not feel that I'm just putting facts on my paper that do not relate to my thesis. I also need to work on clearly defining my thesis so that my reader clearly knows what I'm talking about. Also i need to add flow to my paper so that the reader stays on the tough of train i want them to follow.  My ideas in my paper can be some what trivial so it is key that i present them clearly and efficiently. 


   My main point in my paper is the tactics fast food uses to keep their customers coming back and the morality behind the tactics they use to keep us coming back. it is important we know this because even if you eat fast food you are still being affected by  them. I used references from two books i was able to find on my subject. The books explore many aspects of fast food in depth and are very reliable. I want to include more statistical sources in my paper because i feel my reader will be impacted better thought the combined use of statistical sources and scholarly ones.  when presenting a source i carefully chose what i quote so that i can directly tie back to my thesis. if the quote can be easily interpreted another way i tend to leave it out because it may take away from my point. 

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Useful information

(I can Use these sources in my paper to prove my point that fast food is not only bad for you but has embedded itself in our culture and high grocery prices keep us going back to fast food time after time.)

Jonathan, Reynolds. "Have It Their Way." New York Times Magazine (2003): 78. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 27 Sept. 2011.
     In this article the debate about why we consume fast food takes flight. The author goes into detail about why we option fast food wen we know its bad for us. Even though we are aware of the poor nutrition and nasty origins of fast food we continue to go back to it. He argues its our lifestyle along with good marketing. It seems that a lot of articles point to lifestyle and i agree I also think its something i should further explore and keep in mind when writing my paper. 


"The Big Question." Money 40.6 (2011): 106. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 27 Sept. 2011.
      This article provides data on the increasing price of grocerys. I feel like i could use this data to correlate the relationship of rising food prices and the rise in fast food consumption. Even though i have been advised not to revolve my paper around grocery prices i feel like it is one of the main reasons for fast food rise other than lifestyle; but lifestyle grocery prices and fast food all correlate and this paper will help me do that. 


NEUMAN, WILLIAM. "Crop Yield Raises Risk To Food Cost." New York Times 12 Aug. 2011: 1. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 27 Sept. 2011.
      This article touches on the rising food crisis and the causes for those rising prices. It links sectors of the economy that impact food prices. This is useful to me because i have more data on the increasing food prices. And from what i read in the article the prices are only going to keep rising. Does this mean we will rely more in fast food rather than groceries? we have to eat, and our increasing fast paces life is limiting our food options, and in the other hand rising food prices make us all less incline to eat groceries when we can get a whole ready to eat meal for around 4 bucks. why would we want to buy groceries and eat healthy everyday? when it seems more like a burden to eat healthy than the right way to live.





(This is a nice incert that might help me stay focus and remember what im trying to prove)
    
     Is the price of groceries a factor in America’s obsession with fast food? this question explore the reason behind  Americas obsession with fast food. Fast food restaurants thrive more in America than any other country, this question tries to explore why that is. My research paper would explore the impact of high groceries prices in Americans choosing fast food. Could it be that because fast food is cheaper and more convenient we opt for it time after time before going to the super market and getting groceries to cook a healthy home cooked meal? Obesity in this country will inevitably have to be talked about in my research paper because it directly correlates whit fast food and it may shed light on motives behind peoples eating habits.
       I think my topic has a lot of dimensions to it. I can take my paper in many directions while i purse an answer to my question. I will be able to shed light in issues such as obesity, fast food industry, and grocery prices. Then through my research i will correlate all these things to answer my question :  Is the high price of groceries a factor in americas obsession with fast food?

Thursday, October 13, 2011

8th assignment

      In the article crop yield raises risk to food cost the author explains to the reader why grocery prices always seem to be fluctuating in prices. american farms are taking a big hit in their production which inturn decreases our ability to provide food for our own people. This makes us more incline to import most of our crops, making our food more expensive. in this article he explains that when one section goes up in price it will inevitably affect other sectors "High commodity prices will translate into higher meat prices because the cost of feeding cattle, pigs and poultry with grain will go up, forcing producers to raise fewer animals." (neuman, william). this means that as one commodity rises the other one is sure to follow because they are directly interconnected. And as the demand for food remains constant we will just have to settle for the rising prices. Unless we turn to fastfood. The cheap convenient alternative to feeding your whole family. How fast food manage to keep prices so low will be explored in another source but the process of keeping prices low leaves us with un-nutritious and heath destructive food. the rising prices of groceries are sort of the incentive fast food thrive on to keep people coming back to their low cost convenient savory ( to some) food. 

sources

Jonathan, Reynolds. "Have It Their Way." New York Times Magazine (2003): 78. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 27 Sept. 2011.
     In this article the debate about why we consume fast food takes flight. The author goes into detail about why we option fast food wen we know its bad for us. Even though we are aware of the poor nutrition and nasty origins of fast food we continue to go back to it. He argues its our lifestyle along with good marketing. It seems that a lot of articles point to lifestyle and i agree I also think its something i should further explore and keep in mind when writing my paper. 


"The Big Question." Money 40.6 (2011): 106. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 27 Sept. 2011.
      This article provides data on the increasing price of grocerys. I feel like i could use this data to correlate the relationship of rising food prices and the rise in fast food consumption. Even though i have been advised not to revolve my paper around grocery prices i feel like it is one of the main reasons for fast food rise other than lifestyle; but lifestyle grocery prices and fast food all correlate and this paper will help me do that. 


NEUMAN, WILLIAM. "Crop Yield Raises Risk To Food Cost." New York Times 12 Aug. 2011: 1. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 27 Sept. 2011.
      This article touches on the rising food crisis and the causes for those rising prices. It links sectors of the economy that impact food prices. This is useful to me because i have more data on the increasing food prices. And from what i read in the article the prices are only going to keep rising. Does this mean we will rely more in fast food rather than groceries? we have to eat, and our increasing fast paces life is limiting our food options, and in the other hand rising food prices make us all less incline to eat groceries when we can get a whole ready to eat meal for around 4 bucks. why would we want to buy groceries and eat healthy everyday? when it seems more like a burden to eat healthy than the right way to live.



Kalb, Claudia. "CULTURE OF CORPULENCE." Newsweek 155.12 (2010): 42-48. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 26 Sept. 2011.
   This article stood out to me because of its comprehensive explanation of fast foods role in obesity. It explains how america has moved from a slim nation to an obese one. It also gives some reasons as to why this is. It blames our lifestyle as the number one corporate when it comes to obesity. We rely so much on convenience and we like everything so fast and ready to order that we are willing to trade that off with our healths. It also gives stats on fast food now and before; The article shows how serving sizes have increase. It is eminent that we consume more now than we ever did before. This paper sheds light in many subjects that i will hit in my own paper. it has also linked me to other resources that are useful as well. 




  • Spurlock, Morgan. Super Size Me. New York, N.Y: Hart Sharp Video, 2004
  •      In this movie Morgan Spurlock conducted an experiment with fast food and the effects on it on your body. He spend a month eating nothing but Mac Donald's the most famous fast food restaurant. He had his health analyze by a physician before and after the experiment and the results stunned all of them. Fast food was making morgan physically sick and putting his health in great deterioration. He was able to shed light on the effects of fast food because of studies like this we know that fast food is bad for you, no debating. This will come in handy in my paper because i can prove to my audience the dangers of fast food and why we want to revert back to home cooked meals rather than fast food.  

Monday, October 3, 2011

Beckett Brennan

    Perspectives in the Beckett Brennan are a huge part in the way we perceive the case. We are only handed Beckets perspective so the story seems kind of single sided. I am a collage student myself and i know parties can get very crazy very fast; and thats why i think people were hasn't to believe mrs. Bernnan. She herself admitted to drinking 6 shots of vodka which in actuality was probably a lot more than that, specially when she was unable to get home on her own and was in need of a ride. Im not trying to advocate for the basketball players because we are not aware of their perspectives. Their perspective is played out through Backkets perspective. She didn't seem to me as a rape but she seem more embarrassed of what happend. If she really felt that she was a victim victem of rape she should of taken it to court not a committee. I agree that collages are not capable of dealing with such cases and they shouldn't be. The burden of dealing whit such cases is strictly police related. The collage should help and comply with authorities but not be the ones that solve the matter. This story once again helps us see the importance of perspectives becasue perspectives are essentially blinding us from the truth untill all of them are taken into account and we are able to makd our own choices. 




   In my paper there is a point of view that isn't really considered and that is the other side of the coin. What would people argue when presented my argument?i think i should be analyzing the opposite side because it will only help me strengthen my own argument. One of my sources is presented in the farmers perspective. This perspective allows me to hypothesize why food prizes are so high compared to fast food. It provides insight in  in the farmers life and what they face to keep prices down."High commodity prices will translate into higher meat prices because the cost of feeding cattle, pigs and poultry with grain will go up, forcing producers to raise fewer animals." This was taken from an exert of one of my sources that argues that high food prices can have a ripple effect in the food industry. When price goes up in one sector all sectors will inversely be affected as well. 

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

3 Sources

Why do americans consume fast food?


Jonathan, Reynolds. "Have It Their Way." New York Times Magazine (2003): 78. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 27 Sept. 2011.
     In this article the debate about why we consume fast food takes flight. The author goes into detail about why we option fast food wen we know its bad for us. Even though we are aware of the poor nutrition and nasty origins of fast food we continue to go back to it. He argues its our lifestyle along with good marketing. It seems that a lot of articles point to lifestyle and i agree I also think its something i should further explore and keep in mind when writing my paper. 


"The Big Question." Money 40.6 (2011): 106. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 27 Sept. 2011.
      This article provides data on the increasing price of grocerys. I feel like i could use this data to correlate the relationship of rising food prices and the rise in fast food consumption. Even though i have been advised not to revolve my paper around grocery prices i feel like it is one of the main reasons for fast food rise other than lifestyle; but lifestyle grocery prices and fast food all correlate and this paper will help me do that. 


NEUMAN, WILLIAM. "Crop Yield Raises Risk To Food Cost." New York Times 12 Aug. 2011: 1. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 27 Sept. 2011.
      This article touches on the rising food crisis and the causes for those rising prices. It links sectors of the economy that impact food prices. This is useful to me because i have more data on the increasing food prices. And from what i read in the article the prices are only going to keep rising. Does this mean we will rely more in fast food rather than groceries? we have to eat, and our increasing fast paces life is limiting our food options, and in the other hand rising food prices make us all less incline to eat groceries when we can get a whole ready to eat meal for around 4 bucks. why would we want to buy groceries and eat healthy everyday? when it seems more like a burden to eat healthy than the right way to live.

Monday, September 26, 2011

What drives americas desire for fast food?
Kalb, Claudia. "CULTURE OF CORPULENCE." Newsweek 155.12 (2010): 42-48. Academic Search Complete. EBSCO. Web. 26 Sept. 2011.


       This article stood out to me because of its comprehensive explanation of fast foods role in obesity. It explains how america has moved from a slim nation to an obese one. It also gives some reasons as to why this is. It blames our lifestyle as the number one corporate when it comes to obesity. We rely so much on convenience and we like everything so fast and ready to order that we are willing to trade that off with our healths. It also gives stats on fast food now and before; The article shows how serving sizes have increase. It is eminent that we consume more now than we ever did before. This paper sheds light in many subjects that i will hit in my own paper. it has also linked me to other resources that are useful as well. 



Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Question in Depth

              Is the high price of groceries a factor in americas Obsesion                                                         with fast food?

         Is the price of groceries a factor in America’s obsession with fast food? this question explore the reason behind  Americas obsession with fast food. Fast food restaurants thrive more in America than any other country, this question tries to explore why that is. My research paper would explore the impact of high groceries prices in Americans choosing fast food. Could it be that because fast food is cheaper and more convenient we opt for it time after time before going to the super market and getting groceries to cook a healthy home cooked meal? Obesity in this country will inevitably have to be talked about in my research paper because it directly correlates whit fast food and it may shed light on motives behind peoples eating habits.
Initial Research
  • http://www.foodtimeline.org/foodfaq5.html--- Here i found a time line of some grocery items and how their price has increase over the years. This can help me prove my point that groceries are on the rise; and despite the inflation factor they are still over price.
  • http://www.nfu.org/blog/?p=222--- This website provides and insight as to why groceries prices are on the rise. It blames oil prices for it. But how do restaurants like McDonald's maintain low prices on their menu? 
  • http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/18/rising-food-prices-hunger_n_837664.html--- This website talks about the impact of rising food prices in our society. It tells about the hardships that some americans go through. 
After Sources
    I think my topic has a lot of dimensions to it. I can take my paper in many directions while i purse an answer to my question. I will be able to shed light in issues such as obesity, fast food industry, and grocery prices. Then through my research i will correlate all these things to answer my question :  Is the high price of groceries a factor in americas obsession with fast food?




Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Questions

  • Is the high price of groceries a factor in americas obsession with fast food?
  • Is social inequality a product of government?
  • In our criminal justice system mandatory sentencing takes away the judges discretion and is unfair.
  • Food labels should be more descriptive to keep the public inform.
  • Juvenile criminals should never be trial as adults.
  • Is killing an animal for food animal cruelty?
  • Is the government trust worthy?

Thursday, September 15, 2011

The kitchen


     In the introduction Bill explains why he has become fascinated whit the little things in life. He marbles at the fact that everything has a history that can be traced and is interconnected with more history. That’s why he decides to work on a book that would look at the history of his old Victorian home. Since history intertwines as he gives the history of his kitchen he can subsequently give the history of condiments, stoves, refrigeration e.c.t. . Bill inquires the reader when he writes his book. Inquiry is the process that has the aim to pass on knowledge resolve doubt or solve a problem. Bill breaks our traditional model of inquiring but never the less Bill passes on information resolving doubts in a very creative way. In page 66 of his book bill gives us the use various condiments that are still used today. “Arsenite was used to make vegetables greener or to make jellies glisten. Lead chromate gave bakery products a golden glow and brought radiance to mustard.” Here bill inquiries his reader but he does it in what seem like an orthodox method to us. But I wonder why this method of presenting information is not more widely accepted; I think bill-writing method it very skillful and useful. I also wonder if it was his purpose to do research in a new format or if it just happened to end up that way.

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Bill Bryson

Bill Bryson was born on december 8,1959 in Des moines Iowa. He is the author of various best selling books. He seems to stay in the science topic even thought he has wrote books about the english language. Bill Bryson is currently the chancellor of Durham University.

Monday, September 12, 2011

Building a Mystery

"Building a Mystery": Alternative Research Writing and the Academic Act of Seeking
English 102
         Robert Davis and Mark Shadle are the authors of  "Building a Mystery": Alternative Research Writing and the Academic Act of Seeking; This article talks about the modernist research paper style and it advantages over the traditional research paper format. In the second page of their article they state “In this essay, we will present a series of alternatives to the modernist research paper: the argumentative research paper, the personal research paper, the research essay, and the multi genre/media / disciplinary / cultural research paper.” Davis and Shadle illustrate the strict standardization of the traditional paper only makes students less likely to think outside the box. In the traditional research paper students use a template to create thesis statements, body paragraphs and conclusion. In the other hand the modernist approach to research witch allows for more writer input and uniqueness. He even argues that the standard research paper is more of a vehicle of training rather than the creator of knowledge.  I strongly agree with the authors of this article. I feel like research is somewhat of a loss art that has lost its meaning and importance. When we are asked to do research we look for supporting evidence format it into a research paper and turn it in. The current format re strict scholars from adding their two sense when they provide evidence or when they tri to prove a point. This discourages personal thinking and problem solving; That is why I strongly agree whit the authors Robert Davis and mark shadle.

Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Research Paper analysis

"The media affecting teenage rebellion" by 991093662 is a research paper that blames the media as the cause of teenage rebellion. While reading we were ask to examine the paper and compare it to the definition of research we came up with in class. I feel like the paper did well in some aspects but poor in others. We defined a research paper as a paper with a thesis; I was able to find the thesis in the first page “ in that ways does the media affect how adolescents rebels against authority”. The author tried to prove his point trough out his paper, but he was unable to provide the readers with a unique point of view on the topic. The author was able to provide expert testimony that supported his point as he progress in his research paper. His paper seems to be very factual and his testimony has logos and pathos.
         I felt like the paper was didn’t include no personal experience. Sometimes this personal experience can show the reader that you’ve been there done that and you know what you are talking about. And since he was talking about being a teenager his personal experience would have been very relevant. He didn’t really state a reason for writing but I can infer that informing us was the reason for him to write this essay. Overall this paper was a good example of a research paper. The author exposed a topic, had a thesis, educated an audience, wrote in a high level, and used supporting quotes. I feel like the uniqueness of the paper was not there he took a point of view that has been taken time after time.