Tow #24 A Better Student

Since the begging of time, humans have been challenged with the chill of the first ice age, the thirst of the first drought, and the heat of the first scorching drought, yet, they have found ways to survive through these times; to obtain greatness in the time of ultimate failure. Once Mount Everest was determined to be the highest summit on earth, it was only a matter of time before humans had decided that Mount Everest needed to be climbed. As Jon Krakauer stated, "That's the human race for you- tell them that something is impossible, and they're only going to try harder to attain it. Still, this is a battle unlike any ever fought." The structure of this book creates suspense and astonishment as to how some individuals went about conquering this battle.
By Jon going into flashbacks while talking about the story, it only created a third dimension to the book. All of which, allowed us to thoroughly see through his perspective, truly taking you onto the summit. The story in its gruesome and descriptive entirety, was very great in capturing every second of the adventure.
The parts that truly captured me was the amount of gruesome descriptions and the true rawness of the book. Having done research on Mountain Everest in the past, the research is nothing compared to the story. It's one thing to tell the factual aspects of the mountain and another to include an objective view. As I am a writer myself, I appreciate details and in-depth thoughts that provokes an imagine that is entertaining and thought provoking to the audience. Because of this book, Into Thin Air, it has inspired me to write and also to read more, something that I had struggled with in the past. APELC has also contributed to inspiring me. Yes, it surely has been a rough, stressful, and emotionally draining road but, it ultimate has made me a much better student. And every time I pick up a book, pencil, or pen, I'll remember that. It's been a great trip APELC, thank you.

Tow #23 Cow Urine

American's are known for having a large amount of love for their cow steak/hamburgers, but is the United Kingdom for cow urine? According to Mid-day articles, "Plastic bottles filled with cow urine, which had been marked for '"religious purposes" were found in several London stores which also happen to be selling food" in close proximity of the cow urine. Although not a lot of native UK people are requiring these products, most Southern Asian Hindu's that happen to live in London are demanding this product. Because it is illegal to consume cow urine in England, the article states their unknowing as to whether it is illegal to have cow urine put on the external body; as they explain how the "Hindu's come to buy it, if a baby is born it may be used during religious ceremony for good luck" and for other external purposes, letting the audience know what kind of religious actives that it could be used for. By first introducing the product and the unusual demand for it to American's it allows others, who aren't living in the UK or aren't Hindu, to understand along with imaging a visual (not that all people would like to imagine others consuming/being covered in urine for religious/everyday events.) And if people were wondering who came up with the religious idea, the author goes even deeper in telling when and who had created the religious action," A Hare Krishna temple in Watford, Bhaktivedanta Manor....sad the temple had been selling cow urine since the early 70's". Once the background is covered, they take a step back about go back to the real issue at the hand; selling these bottles of urine next to food. As the FSA, Foods Standards Agency, said although it is illegal to sell the urine for human consumption, when applied externally it would not be considered food - although it could be subject to other legislation." Now that they doesn't necessarily go cause any illegal consequences when consumers, the court could still charge the stores for having the product particularly close to the premises of the food which would expose them to harmful disease. By picking apart the article one by one, and eventually going into depth then back to the original question, it allows the readers to understand the material easier.

Tow #22 WNS vs Zika

If you think having Zika was bad for humans, can you only imagine what disease animals are going through. To be more specific, what disease bats are now experiencing? March is known for St. Patricks day, but it's also known for having National Bat Day! The Discovery News helps bring some light to bats during this month. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, FWS, announced in late March that a bat was found with the deadly disease, white nose syndrome (WNS). This is extremely bad news and very important as this is now the first time the condition had been seen in western North America. While reading this article the author, Discovery News mentions, "It robs them of energy they need to survive, as their fat reserves are prematurely drained. It can lay waste to entire colonies of bats," including the major consequences of this disease. After mentioning the affects of the disease, it includes the previous history of this disease and its whereabouts. This helps the audience see the statistics behind it, besides Dan Ashe, A Wildlife Service officer, mentions his experience in seeing this disease. Towards the end of the article it goes into further detail about the disease stating, "WNS is caused by the fungus Pseudogymnoascus destructans, which infects bats while they hibernate, harming their nose, ears, and wings." Now this includes a visual for the audience. By first starting in very general terms and getting more detailed, also called deduction, it allowed the audience to understand the text and not be overwhelmed. Because the author used that style of writting it was very effective towards their purpose; slowly making the audience aware of the horrible disease that is going to gradually affect the population of the small brown bats, (Myotis lucifugus).

Tow #21 Visual Text

The shoe brand, All Star, is highly known for their converse. Advertisements such as the one shown above in this visual text, explains how the company describes themselves as the most wanted brand. They [converse] come in two versions, high top and low top. Converse are very popular among their younger customers. Little do the customers know that, although stylish, these shoes are one of the worst kind. Most of their customers use these converse on the go, going out to a semi-casual event, and can even be worn with a new fashion statement, but besides looks these converse aren't all they say to be. With the material being extremely thin, these converse aren't best worn in the winter and even in the summer. Because of the material that they use, a cotton based canvas, it soaks up water/mud/any liquid and holds it rather then let it drain out it. The original high top converse were intentionally created for weightlifters as it provides create ankle support and provides stability for the weight lifters. Given that time as changed and it's worn mostly for nonathletic events, the companies have thinned out their materials only enhancing the chances for ankle issues. As for the low tops, they have very hard and small soles, providing for no cushion for the foot. The shape of the shoe has narrowed, eliminating the wide-footed customers. This narrow shape isn't very supportive as their customers will now trip and slip because the shoes don't cover a wide area. With the dangerous shape, and thinned out material that blindly traps customers to buy into these items, All Star is making billions by producing these casual shoes. Instead of creating a better shoe, they fool their customers by promoting their product these advertisements that ultimately leave out their flaws.

Tow #20 IRB

Some times people need thirty seconds of insane courage in order for them to do something that they've been to scared to do for hours, days, months, even years. In the case of Jon Krakauer, he didn't need those thirty seconds until he was near the top of Mount Everest and a violent storm was approaching quickly. Between life and death, he needed thirty seconds to make a decision whether to stay where he was and risk dying or follow through and use thirty seconds of insane courage and leap to his possible death or savior. His decision, I found, to be very controversial. He had decided to take the leap and, luckily, was able to find cover by himself. This idea of insane courage was the wrong instinct and shouldn't have been even considered. With the weather conditions exponentially worsening, the idea of using courage and bravery was stupid. As Jon was accompanied by other travelers while they were climbing Mount Everest, he took a selfish act and saved his own life and had put others lives on the line. By leaping it caused the rope that was attached to his stomach to shift suddenly and cause the others to loose their balance and almost fall off. Not only were weather conditions setting an issue but also the equipment that they were carrying was extremely heavy. If Jon had miscalculated his leap, his luggage would've pulled him down and caused a more dangerous situation and the conditions were already worsening. Yes, his life was at stake but so were others. On the other hand, Jon’s instinct/action didn't cause a lot of disturbance as the native climbers were able to quickly react to the situation and made sure that everyone was safe, regardless of Jon's selfish, and dangerous action.

Tow #19 Uterus Transplant

"I crave that experience ... I want the morning sickness, the backaches, the feet swelling. I want to feel the baby move. That is something I've wanted for as long as I can remember." The very words of a women who was born without a uterus. On NPR (National Public Radio), they discussed the importance of the uterus transplant in Europe and how it's now being used in the United States. The importance of this topic (uterus transplants) is demonstrated through the multiple quotes that are being used; utilizing pathos towards their audience. Their audience pertains to women who are experiencing pregnancy issues to to their uterus. Many people such as surgeons, doctors, and innocent citizens, describe the newly introduced operation to the United States, by saying that "we've opened the door. We've stepped through it." With many women agreeing that childbirth is the "true feeling of becoming a mother", since their feels are being captured, NPR then sold their audience on the factual evidence that is presented. Mainly describing the number of individuals who are affected by this and the number of lives that it has changed. Anyone who many view this article would also be aware of the current political debates going on. They would be aware of that because in a recent political debate, the topic of transplants was briefly brought up by a citizen towards the political parties and their take on the new procedures. With pathos hooking the audience, ethos locking them in, and also the questioning of political figures, it's no doubt that this article was successful of reaching it's purpose - successfully spread the news of the new surgery. Provided the number of women who are affected by this, from my understanding it successfully reached those individuals among others. NPR is known for their enlightening radio broadcasts and usually draw a lot of audiences. Through NPR, the audience received the information.

Tow #18 Dolphins

For this week’s text of week, I will be discussing the conflicts and benefits of radioactive tools that have allowed researcher to discover a deeper level into the world of the bottlenose dolphin and other dolphins as well. Strange to say but just like humans, dolphins call each other by their names too! Not exactly with words, new research shows that Bottlenose dolphins communications consist of whistling! Just like humans, dolphins have different tones of 'whistles' that signal different individuals. Although this research isn't ground-breaking it allows researchers and colleges such as University of St. Andrew's Sea mammal Research Unit, to practice different ways of possibly communicating with these animals. Recently Software from the Wild Dolphin Project has been used for the first real-time translation of a dolphin whistle and better data tools are giving fresh insights into primate communications. Denise Herzing, a researcher, experiences a swim with one of these dolphins that she won't forget. As she is able to connect with these dolphins she is now able, with the given technology to communicate with them on a deeper level, "I was like whoa! We have a match. I was stunned". With this new techonolgy Denise stresses the idea of how these tools can be harmful and dangerous towards the animals and humans. More research has been put into place about how these dolphin translation tools can be used in a less harmful and dangerous way. Dolphins are a huge part of the ecosystem. Bottlenose dolphin are very interesting creatures as other dolphins send different type of frequencies, which differs from the whistles that the bottle nose dolphins perform. Between the research that is being done and the extensive amounts of labs and fundraisers that are being performed, it’s no doubt that the Wild Dolphin project will be able to turn this fairly harmful tool into a device that is safe for the environment but also supplies vital information for new information.