In-Class Writing 8

My Top Five Movies/Books

1)      Pirates of the Caribbean.

2)      Of Mice and Men

3)      The Adventures of Huck Finn

4)      Titanic

5)      October Sky

Group’s Top Five + Bibliography

1)      Harry Potter (1^st Movie)

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. Dir. Chris Columbus. Perf. Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson. Warner Bros., 2001. Film.

2)      Toy Story

 Story. Dir. John Lasseter. Perf. Tim Allen, Tom Hanks, Annie Potts. Disney*Pixar, 1995. Film.

3)      Lion King

The Lion King. Dir. Rob Minkoff. Perf. Matthew Broderick, Jeremy Irons, James Earl Jones. Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment, 1994. Film.

4)      Pirates of the Caribbean (1^st movie)

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (Two-Disc Collector's Edition). Dir. Gore Verbinski. Perf. Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush, Orlando Bloom. Walt Disney Video, 2003. Film.

5)      Forrest Gump

Forrest Gump. Dir. Robert Zemeckis. Perf. Tom Hanks, Robin Wright Penn, Gary Sinise. Paramount Pictures, 1994. Film.

In-class writing 7

Glen Beck makes his case that video games are harming our society.  He states that the Grand Theft Auto video game allows players to do vulgar acts.  He then makes reference to the fact that it is not natural human instinct to kill; saying that in WW1 soldiers would not naturally shoot opposing forces.

He says that the video games of today do the same thing as combat simulators of the early twentieth century.  He makes it known that he is staunchly against the juvenile use of such games.

I see Glen Beck’s point of view when he is talking about the violence of new video games.  Some video games go over the top with the amount of inappropriate and violent acts.  They do not positively benefit children’s development.  However I believe that the way Beck delivers his information seems a bit extreme although his intentions are good.

In-class writing 6

I personally know very little about digital music and music piracy.  I have never downloaded music that was not from iTunes or a CD disk.  I know that iTunes can be very costly if it is used to purchase many songs but I don’t download many songs so it doesn’t bother me.  People have many different on the topic of music piracy.  Some believe that music is a form of art and that it should be free to the public while others believe that it is a profit making entity.  I read The Age of Music Piracy is Officially Over article by Paul Boutin.  In this article Boutin talks about how he believes that the age of digital piracy is over because the record industry is beginning to crack down harder on the illegally downloaded music.

In-class writing 5

            The person here is trying to sell themselves as what appears to be a normal teenage college student.  It is obvious that he is interested in automotive technologies and cars because of the interests that are noted.  There are no photos besides the profile picture which leads the viewer to believe that he is not as technologically adept as others in his generation.  There is an ad for Goodyear tires on the profile which talks about how Goodyear is supporting our troops overseas.  This ad appeals to the viewer’s sense of patriotism and connects Goodyear with being patriotic.  The only image on the ad is a picture of a Goodyear racing tire and wheel which goes for a simpler approach yet still draws the attention of the viewer.  This ad is targeting race fans because it uses the image of the tire which is commonly associated with racing.  This ad appears on this page because of the interests having to do with racing and automobiles.  Overall these ads are well suited for this profile because they fit with the overall theme of the page.

Warburton Blog Post 5

Christine Rosen’s journal article, Virtual Friendship and the New Narcissism, is a well written analysis of the new technological aspect of friendship that has grown astronomically in the past few years.  The main point Rosen is trying to convey in this essay is that the social friendships we are making today are not as meaningful as pre-digital age friendships, and can also be damaging to social skills.  This article comes from The New Atlantis, which is a conservative journal that focuses on relevant and new technology.  The intended audience for this article was most likely the elderly and less technology experienced generation due to the fact that it points out the negatives of the social networks such as its creation of a more self-centered generation of young people.  The arguments in this essay are all opinion based, however they have facts to back them but there is nothing to prove beyond doubt that the arguments presented are the absolute truth.  Rosen appears to be a credible writer because she keeps her focus on the topic and does not stray off on ideological rants which would be unprofessional and unlike a credible author.  Rosen uses specific instances to prove her points; she referenced a 2006 Dateline special about the easiness of predators to contact children to show that these social network sites are not as safe as we think.  She uses several other specific instances to prove her point that social network sites are primarily detrimental to the social skills of young people who use them.  Rosen thoroughly addresses all negative aspects of these sites but she does not consider the positives of the same sites and what roles they play in keeping friendships alive.  Overall I agree with Rosen in that too much of these sites can be socially harmful but I also believe that in when used in moderation these sites are not harmful to their users.

Warburton Blog post 4

            I chose to view the new commercial put out by the Chevrolet Motor Company.  In this ad the narrator takes you through a very brief history of the company while images of their most iconic cars are shown.  The ad then moves to the present day and proceeds to show all the new innovations and technologies that are offered.  It video has a nostalgic feel to it because you originally see black and white clips of old assembly lines.  This ad draws the attention of the viewer because the voice of the narrator it very calm and makes the audience stop to listen what is being said.  The commercial appeals to the audience’s sense of national pride because it stresses throughout that the cars truly embody the American spirit.  The ad also appeals to the idea of freedom that comes from driving on the open road.  The ad is designed to appeal to all types of people because it shows how the company is using efficient technology as well as developing higher performance engines.  It appeals to anyone who enjoys cars and the history behind them.  The ad assumes you have heard of Chevrolet before and that you as the viewer are familiar with some of the more iconic cars that they have produced in the past.  The viewers see older photographs and associate that with simpler, more care free times which is then associated with the company.  This ad can be viewed on television but can also be found on YouTube.  The different mediums also show that Chevrolet is trying to get this ad to as many people as possible from all age groups.

Link to ad:

http://www.youtube.com/chevrolet?x=us_showcase_874&feature=pv&seo=goo_|_2010_Chevy_Retention_YouTube_|_IMG_Chevy_Make_YouTube_PV_|_Chevrolet_|_chevy

In-Class Writing #4

The Virginia Tech homepage is a very well planned and appealing website.  It incorporates the schools colors with links to different departments and activities.  The website draws the viewer’s attention to the center window in the middle of the page which has the latest news about events involving Virginia Tech.  The website has a search bar at the top which allows the user to easily navigate the through the site.  To the right of the search bar is a small memorial ribbon, commemorating the April 16^th tragedy.  It shows at the bottom of the page a small map of the world with all Virginia Tech highlighted and descriptions of academics and student life also at the bottom to the right.