Tynt Eyes Copy/Paste

Tynt, a San Francisco-based analytics company, is working with a raft of publishers, including Time Inc. and Conde Nast titles, to help them determine what topics people are most engaged with based on their copying habits. Tynt returns the analytics to publishers that can make money from people copying their content.

Tynt's technology recognizes when some one starts highlighting information on a web page. Tynt also always publishers to insert a link on text that is copied from their site. They also might have an advertisement pop up when text is copied.

Talking On Cell While Driving

Six states have outlawed talking on the phone while driving. These states include; California, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, and Washington. I believe if a person is not committing any other violation of driving, such as swerving or following too closely, that talking on a cell while driving is acceptable. People should be perfectly capable of talking on the phone while driving as long as they are watching the road and not doing other things within their car. For people who frequently talk on the phone while driving, such as business people, I would suggest that they get a blue tooth or some other device that they don't need to physically hold. I do think that people should be scarce when talking or texting on their phone while driving. If it is not done with caution it can cause accidents and fatalities.

2001: A Space Yawnessey

Devan Twibell

Tess Evans

English 103

December 1, 2009

2001: A Space Yawnessey

            I can honestly say I am a huge science fiction fan. If it is considered sci-fi, then I will gladly watch it. Yes, some sci-fi films are horrible and the special effects make you want to laugh, even today. Yet, in Stanley Kubrick’s film 2001: A Space Odyssey, the special effects were quit groundbreaking for its time and some say its pioneering special effects are what gave us the effects we have today. I am not saying I enjoyed the film, it literally put me to sleep the first time I watched it. What I am saying is that I have a huge amount of respect for Stanley Kubrick and his team for putting together such a revolutionary film.

            The film basically centers around future space travel and the technology involved. The beginning starts out with the title “Dawn of Man”, then shows a group of monkeys that live together. We watch the monkeys mess around for a long thirty minutes and towards the end it shows how the monkeys learned to use bones as weapons, thus showing man’s intelligence for invention. They find a mysterious object, which is later named: the monolith. Throughout the whole movie its meaning is never revealed, which I hated. I don’t like having to make my own interpretations; I enjoy the part where someone finally figures out the eluding truth behind something. Now we go to the present, where a monolith was found buried on the moon’s surface. I admit the special effects were pretty good considering this movie was created forty years ago. Not to mention help from computers was not yet invented. Kubrick brought in engineers to develop his effects, not a special effects team, which was a daring move and one of the reasons this film is so significant to so many people. Next is the “Jupiter Mission”, which includes two men and a few members in “hibernation”. The super computer HAL accompanies them on this trip, but turns on them. He ends up killing one of the men and all of the sleeping ones. Eventually the last survivor, David, disconnects HAL, and a prerecorded message plays telling them of the monolith, the reason behind their mission. The very end shows David going through a path in outer space where he ends up in a room. There on the bed is an old and dying David, with the monolith at his feet. He eventually turns into a fetus that looks as if it is headed towards Earth. I really have no idea what Kubrick was trying to get across with these images, I suppose just to add more mystery to the monolith. Personally, I didn’t think any of this was relevant to the rest of the movie.

            Throughout the whole movie there is rarely any talking, just noises and music. I found this extremely irritating because the noises, for example the heavy breathing in the space suit, would continue for several minutes. The music, which was usually classical, played for what seemed like an eternity and to an unchanging scene.  Then there would just be warning noises on the ship that would keep repeating, “beep”. Upon reading about the film I know that Kubrick wanted limited talking, instead he wanted music to take the role of dialogue. While many found this artistically genius, I thought it was what made the movie so dull. When there was talking the film could kind of hold my attention, but there was very little of it. Like I’ve said before I enjoy sci-fi movies for the most part, but all through this film I just kept thinking this has to get better, but it never did.

            Every single review I have watched or read has gushed at how great these special effects were, and I agree.  I understand it doesn’t come close to what I’m used to seeing, but I am able to put myself back forty years ago and see that some of these images were probably freakishly realistic to many viewers. Although I did not like the movie overall, I have total respect for the makers of this movie. I did not like that there was barely any speaking and I did not like how they would continue the same noise over and over. I admit though 2001: A Space Odyssey was a bold and daring risk, which is what makes it so famous to this day.

Compiling a Portfolio

Portfolios are used for many things and by many people. Artists use them, models use them, and also writers use them. Basically they are just a collection of your best work and why you think they are good. When creating a portfolio you want to ask yourself what the purpose is, who is the audience, what is the genre, what is your stance, and what is the design going to be like. For writers, portfolios need to include freewriting, outlines, rough drafts, edited drafts, source materials, notes, and also reflections of your own work. Once you've compiled your portfolio, my book says that the most important aspect of your portfolio is the written statement reflecting on your own work. I never even knew this was to be included into a portfolio. A specific type of portfolio is a Literacy Portfolio, which is used for you to describe how you and your writing have evolved throughout the years. You might want to think about things like do you enjoy reading? What's the earliest thing you remember reading and writing? Who is most responsible for shaping your writing? All of these questions should be answered in your literacy portfolio. You may also want to include school papers, drawings from your childhood, photos, favorite books, and so on. I think a literacy portfolio might be kind of fun to do because you get to remember your childhood and the good memories that come with it.

Students and Drinking

My group has chosen to record a video that is trying to persuade teenage students not to consume alcohol. We are going to start off our video with a party setting. Three of us will be mixed in with the "partying" students while one member of our group will be recording. We will have dialogue where we are making fun of for example the drunk girl passed out or the girl laying right next to the toilet. We will also include some startling facts of the consequences of drinking.

Media/Design

When designing a paper the first part to consider is what type of font style you would like.  You want your readers to be able to easily read the text, but the font style also has to fit with the type of paper you're writing. The book says Times New Roman is businesslike or academic, which is what I have always used when typing, and others such as Comic Sans makes your paper look more playful. The book suggests not to go overboard with typefaces use only two or, at most, three different styles. Next to consider is the layout of the text. An academic essay, will usually have a title centered at the top, one inch margins all around, and double spacing. This is what I am most familiar with and have never written a paper any other way. Then you divide your text into paragraphs. By using paragraphs it chunks the information together so the reader can easily process all the information. Once that is completed we move on to the heading. These headings give the reader an idea of what they are about to read. You can write your heading as a question, noun, or phrases. At the end of your design you need to evaluate it before moving on. Ask questions such as, does it fit the purpose, does it meet the needs of its audience, how well does it meet the requirements of the genre, and how well does the design reflect the writer's stance. Now we move on to spoken texts, such as speeches and presentations.  For a spoken text there needs to be a clear structure so the audience can follow what you're saying. Also summarize a complex point so the audience can follow what you're saying. Repeat your speech over and over to present a powerful presentation. Also it helps to include visual aids to get a point across to the audience. The last text is an electronic text which includes blogs, emails, and other online communication. First you need a home page which gives the name of the site and gives the readers an understanding of what the site is about. A clear organized structure is a crucial part to designing a web page because you want your readers to be able to easily sift through the different aspects of the page. Also an explicit navigation system needs to be included. This shows what's on the site and lets readers click on the main pages. Just as an essay there needs to be a consistent design by using colors to highlight what is what and using typeface to distinguish different parts from others. Some websites also include links which let the reader click on a related topic and read about it.

Beginning and Ending

Today I will be reading on how to begin and end a story. A helpful tip the book shares is that an introduction should entice its readers to keep reading by connecting to the text through their interests such as shared experiences, anecdotes, or another attention grabbing device. When beginning a story I learned that I need to point out what I will be talking about in the introduction so my readers will have an idea of what the rest of the story will be like. This is called a thesis statement, and all beginnings should contain one. Do not assume that just because the reader knows the key points means he/she will know about the whole topic so providing background information will make for a solid story. Also defining the key concepts will assert the way you feel about your topic. You could start with an anecdote that relates to your story or ask a question to get the reader thinking at the very beginning, this will also grab their attention. Finally we reach the end of the story in which we will restate the main point, discuss the implications of the argument, refer to the beginning, end with an anecdote or propose some action. Another important aspect of a story is its title. Here are some examples from the book of different titles; sometimes titles simply announce the subject of the text: "Black Men and Public Space". Some titles provoke readers, "Thank God for the Atom Bomb". While others add a subtitle, "Aria: Memoir of a Bilingual Childhood". The book explains the strategy to ease into a thesis statement. First they say to state your topic as a question, then turn you question into a position, and then narrow your thesis. A topic sentence states the subject and focus of the paragraph and is usually at the beginning of a paragraph.