Extra credit portfolio revision

Portfolio

THE PORTFOLIO IS DUE WEDNESDAY APRIL 30^th

Audience-

·       The audience is your instructor.

Purpose-

·        Compose an overall reflection for your portfolio that introduces its contents.

·        Explain an individual sections, reflections how the pieces you include. exemplify your communication skills.

·        Remember to keep in mind “How does communication work in your field?”

·        Be sure to include why you made your revision choices and how your. perspective has changed from your first drafts to your final piece.

Title/Introduction-

·      -  For your introduction it is all about how you’ve grown as a writer.

·      -  Refer to what WOVE is and how in each aspect there is has grown over this course.

·      -  This should be in the form of a reflection

·       - Include examples from previous works that you have worked on and how it has improved yourself as a writer.

Revision of a Summary with Reflection-

·       - First select a piece that you can do a significant amount of re-writing.

·        -Next, try to “re-see” the summary.

·      -  Delete, add, or change anything that is necessary

·    -    Keep in mind the audience that you have chosen and how specifically you can make this communication clearer.

·       - Be sure to be very critical of yourself.

OVE Piece with a Reflection-

·       - First, choose the paper with your best efforts in oral, visual, and communication efforts.

·       - Answer why you chose this, and what changes, if any did you do to benefit it.

·       - How this paper reflects your best oral, visual, and communication efforts.

Extra Information/Questions-

·        -For any extra information and questions, either e-mail your instructor or refer to the original outline which will include extra information and questions to ask yourself.

      Reflection of Changes-

I rewrote the outline. What I aimed to do was to make the most effective outline that would be the most helpful to me. I prefer concise as possible writings, with still containing enough information to get a good grade. That being said, with continuously reviewing this outline it contained a lot of good and useful information.  DO NOT DELETE OR LOSE ALL COPIES OF THIS. I think it could be a really useful reference to students when they are creating their portfolios. That being said, it is overwhelming to a lot of people including me. So what I did was simply revise this and make it as concise and informational.

The format of everything got thrown off with the translation of microsoft word to the blog. Everything was bullet-pointed basically like it started out as. Also, somethings were centered but it is all thrown off

FINAL RESEARCH PAPER! (The audience and another comment are at the very end!)

Ryan Swenson

English 250

“Biochemistry Communicational Summary”

Biochemistry is the study of chemical reactions and processes in living organisms. When concerned with bettering one’s communicational skills through writing in biochemistry, it is important to master a few key practices that will further your understanding of the scientific method (For those of you who may not know what the scientific method is you can check out this website quick: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/scientific+method ). There are three major categories of writing/communication in the field of biochemistry. The categories consist of procedural design, reports on data and evidence, and lastly the communicational skills that are necessary to extend one’s knowledge in specific fields of study. For this division of science it is of high importance to become familiar and comfortable with all three types in order to become a more capable and well-rounded biochemist.
Before a biochemist should begin experimenting, it is necessary to put together a proper step-by-step plan so that when it is time to gather information it will yield reliable, legitimate data. When reliable, legitimate information is brought up it refers to an individual’s results from an experiment of which were not open to a lot of bias or other types of error that would end up being no significant use to any person(s). Aside from that, if a biochemist is attempting to create a lab procedure there are specific components that will be applicable to the writing process that an individual can use to follow and create a successful end product. From lab to lab there will always be a general outline for creating procedures that has been noted.
The very first item that each and every scientist should include would be identifying and stating your problem. To begin experimenting in a lab, it is necessary to do this so that an individual does not waste time searching for results when an actual problem isn’t even identified. That would waste valuable lab time and in some instances money. This is not the only important reason for stating the problem. In addition to being a waste of time and money, establishing and clearly specifying the problem you are looking to solve helps any other scientist or person of interest clearly see what an individual is attempting to do. The sharing and scientist-to-scientist communication that would be involved will be discussed as we progress further in this paper.
Another component of the statement of the problem is including background information that is relevant to the topic that one would be studying. Even in beginning introductory biochemistry labs, the professors will include precise information for the topic of experimentation (“BBMB 102: Introduction to Biochemistry Lab Manual”). When deciding what to include for background information there are a few helpful questions that, if answered, can be useful when a biochemist is crafting a lab procedure. The first question to think about would be that if one was to read your work, would this individual be able to fully understand what is going on? Another question which is just a twist of the first would be to put yourself in the reader’s shoes. If you were reading this with no previous knowledge would the problem be clearly understood? Chances are that if you personally wouldn’t be able to then it would be appropriate to add more information on the subject. There is however a finite limit of background information that should be included. Often if a scientist were unsure if there was too much or not enough information, a fellow scientist/advisor/teacher could offer useful advice because they have been around the scientific method for a much longer period of time and from here it is now acceptable to move onto developing a more complex way to state the problem.
        While your problem you chose is imperative when devising a procedure, making an educated guess or proposal based on prior evidence is one of the most pivotal pieces to this process. It is key that this is a complete statement can be testable so that there is a point to creating a lab (“Lab Report Template”). Also known as the hypothesis, it is going to be the main element that will be tested directly for the experiment. The information gathered and conclusions mentioned later all are based off of the hypothesis. To formulate a hypothesis, there is a basic and general formula that applies to just about every hypothesis tested. This format is called an “If-then” statement. An example would be if a scientist wanted to test if water and light will make a plant grow. The hypothesis would be “If water and light are given to a plant, then the plant will grow.” This can be tested by giving the plant water and light and then giving a plant neither water nor light, and then compared by growth. If one becomes readily able to make a hypothesis then comes a great skill that will be useful in every biochemistry class or experiment to come.
        A biochemist uses many types of equipment for various labs and tests. When creating a lab procedure be sure to record what devices and other useful tools that were involved with the lab. Although it was not mentioned earlier, another requirement to have a successful lab is that it is easily replicated. Listing the materials then is important so another scientist could read the entire lab and be able to recreate it. In some instances, if the equipment is very complex to use, it would be very necessary to explain how to set-up and use the device. It provides more clarity for lab duplication. After the materials are listed comes writing out the plan to test for the hypothesis determined earlier.
        The procedure itself is the last piece of the puzzle that contributes to the completeness of the lab procedure. The detailed order in which you perform the lab is the procedure. It contains information on how the hypothesis was tested and gives valuable insight to the reasons for the way the testing will be carried out (“Scientific Reports”). Bringing back an earlier discussion of background information where you ask yourself certain questions, it should be noted that for determining how in-depth to go with a specific step in the procedure it should be followed on the basis of if any person with no knowledge of the subject picked up the procedure they could perform it. That often requires a certain amount of lengthiness to make certain a flawless lab could be performed. For the younger biochemists, there is always some help from teachers or teaching assistants that provide excellent advice on how to design these ever so precisely. Also, there is always a lot of information online that can be utilized effectively. When all of this is done it concludes the lab procedure for said experiment.
          Assuming the lab had a viable hypothesis and a well thought out procedure it is time to transition to another type of writing that biochemists encounter. After collecting the data from the experiment it is time to draw conclusions and communicate them effectively.
          As a biochemist, composing the results is crucial to being a fitting scientist which comes when acquiring the ability to draw educated conclusions based on data is done with ease. The first aspect that should be identified before creating it is to target your audience so that when one is writing, the author can include helpful terms or definitions depending on who it is. This is also so the paper can be best communicated to the audience and then allows one to begin structuring the writing (“The Scientific Method: A model for conducting scientific research”). Drafting this concerns creating a report in accordance with the data obtained. Building this summary may not come naturally at first, but it is important to reiterate that great ability comes from immense practice. Practice comes with experience so as a biochemist it is a good ability to be optimistic whenever facing a challenge. For these summaries, it is a good idea to identify trends in the data that can be found by creating visual pieces such as data tables and graphs. If these visuals are created ever, always include them into a lab report for the emphasis of clarity. An immense amount of emphasis should also be placed on including whether or not the hypothesis was correct. As the whole point of the experiment is to test it, it should be easily understood as to why this may be important. For a good report just remember to include what you expected, what you found, and how to improve the lab for the next time if something wasn’t what should be expected. Having these three parts along with the other information described earlier will be detrimental to the successfulness of creating a good lab report. Lastly comes the last analysis of how biochemists communicate, through a more informal way.
         Collaboration is comparing and sharing information. This is a very intriguing way of communication, and the cooperation between scientists has led to some of the great discoveries that science boasts to this day. A very famous example would be how Watson and Crick were able to create the ball-and-stick display of DNA to show its double helix structure. They however collaborated and shared the data that Rosalind Franklin discovered which indicated the type of shape that it may occur in using x-ray diffraction. The discovery of the shape of DNA would result in the Nobel Prize being handed out to Watson and Crick (Brooker, Graham, and Stiling 222-224). From these findings to so many more in the science world, it is amazing how this type of communication serves to be such an important type of communication. From the time that a potential biochemist enter college, it is already time to stress the importance of this skill. Information however should not be copied or plagiarized from another source. In no areas of discipline is cheating ever tolerable so be wise when demonstrating collaboration. Always furthering your communication skills is going to strengthen and better a person to be as well-rounded a scientist as possible.
         Whether setting up experiments or analyzing data, following along with this paper can provide valuable techniques and hints to become a triumphant communicator in the biochemistry field of study. If these become well thought out and mastered than all three major types of communication can be utilized to the scientist’s advantage for the rest of the scientific path laid out before an individual.

Works Cited:
 "Lab Report Template." Lab Report Template. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Mar. 2014
 "Design Research: The Scientific Method." Design Research: The Scientific Method. 12 Mar. 2014 <http://depts.washington.edu/rural/RURAL/design/scimethod.html#communicating>.
“Biology: for Bio 211 and 212”. Iowa State University. Brooker, Robert; Graham, Linda; Stiling, Peter; Widmaier. Copyright 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies.
"College of Arts and Sciences." The Writing Center Scientific Reports Comments. 11 Mar. 2014 <https://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/scientific-reports/>.
 “BBMB 102: Introduction to Biochemistry”. Spring 2014. N.p., n.d
-The audience for this paper is biochemists of all type and more specifically incoming potential biochemists
(Also, the blog won't let me indent so i just hit the space bar to make it look nice, sorry).

"Research Paper Stuff" 

My research paper is important to me because it is all about my major. When doing most writing assignments it is often common to see them as not relevant or a waste of time, however when you do come across an English class that allows you to do something with your major it all of a sudden has this relevance.

          So what I mean by relevance is that this paper is directly involved with how communicating is done in my field. When I first began this paper I did not really know exactly how communicating and writing worked in my field, but I definitely gained this knowledge through obtaining my sources and other types of research done by myself. This proved to be really important to me.

          This paper is so important to me because it gets me more involved with my major and topics that I could possibly be studying. I had the chance to search for any sources that would help with my paper, as long as it was relevant to my topic. I think that this is paper could be important to others as well.

          This paper that I will be constructing, is going to have a lot of good information for how many scientific majors communicate. Often there is a lot of overlap in the sciences for how writing is done so this could be used my even biology, chemistry, and even physics majors. The research paper has information on the communication and types of communication done by the sciences, specifically biochemistry. It also, has credible sources that will help guide and inform the readers of how this type of communication is done. Obtaining this many sources was sort of a challenge but will be rewarding when the paper itself will be written.

          As mentioned prior to this paragraph I had to obtain 12 sources. This was not super difficult once I really got into it. I found it to be less and less of a burden the more I got into it. I started reading different articles about my major and found many interesting articles. The hardest and most frustrating part of the sources so far was the annotative bibliography. I did not really understand exactly how to make one. Also, the work involved was a lot at the time because I had so much other homework to do. I have never done anything like that so it was all new to me. I’ve cited sources, but not in that type of manner. Another issue I ran into was citing the pictures. I didn’t really understand how to do so, but am still in the process of fully understanding it.

          Overall even with these struggles, I do think this paper will be rewarding for me and to others in the sciences who read it.

Proposal

“Research Proposal”

Being a biochemistry major through even just this freshman year has made me propose the question of how writing works in my field and how they communicate as well. There is a lot of crossover with biology and chemistry in this, as the writing in those fields is almost exactly the same. The writing and communication for the sciences can almost all have the same categories of communication. The way that I plan to attack this problem is through the normal 5 paragraph style. I will incorporate three main body paragraphs.

The first main body paragraph will be about one style of how writing in my field works and specifically lab design/procedure. Designing labs is one way that scientists need to write with precise detail so that the results they find can be validated. If you have a well-designed lab and it is free of any flaw and error then the findings you obtain can help prove or reject your hypothesis. I will be putting 3-5 sources into this section. This paragraph is the first style I was exposed to so far as an ISU student.

The second type of writing that I encountered as a student here was lab reports. It is very important in the science world to get the results that they need. It is even more important to be able to take the results that you acquired from your lab and be able to organize the data thoughtfully and effectively to accurately describe and convince others that your findings are important and also correct. This is a key piece of writing for science and I will again be using 3-5 sources for this paragraph and the last body paragraph.

For my final paragraph of the body, it will consist of how scientists communicate and how they have communicated to gain further knowledge and draw new conclusions as well. Collaborating with other scientists can be key to your research. I plan on using some classical experiments as examples and will also, give a good example of a more recent way in which researchers have communicated to make new discoveries. I also want to note here that this way of collaboration is pivotal to almost any science-based major.

As far as everything else other than the body, I plan on going about my introduction and conclusion just as would be normally made with a thesis and map in the introduction, and a re-stated thesis in the conclusion.

12 sources

"Lab Report Template." Lab Report Template. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Mar. 2014

This article is an outline for a possible lab creation. It has certain aspects that are important for creating a lab proposal, as well as lots of questions and ideas you should be thinking about when creating a lab. There is really no bias or opinion as this is an outline. I will be using this lab template as an example in my first body paragraph which is one of my main points on how writing works in my field.

“BBMB 102: Introduction to Biochemistry”. Spring 2014. N.p., n.d

The manual that I was given in my biochemistry lab has all sorts of lab experiments in it. They all start with some background information, have a materials list, procedure, data tables, etc. It is a procedural type of writing and has little bias if any. I will use this manual in my first and second paragraphs and tie it how it uses elements of a good lab experiment and how the analysis questions and data report are involved in the research part of scientific writing.

“Biology: for Bio 211 and 212”. Iowa State University. Brooker, Robert; Graham, Linda; Stiling, Peter; Widmaier. Copyright 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies.

The biology book has a lot of useful sections including one’s that have experiments which include some procedural parts as well as reports of findings. It also talks about the importance of communication and collaboration of scientists with other scientists. Lastly, there are some experiments that include collaboration including Watson and Crick’s conclusion of the shape of be very helpful and has little bias because it is a science resource textbook.

"College of Arts and Sciences." The Writing Center Scientific Reports Comments. 11 Mar. 2014 <https://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/scientific-reports/>.

This article by the UNC writing center has a really in-depth and well thought out guideline to writing scientific lab reports. It has a lot of information regarding how to structure it, what the goals of the paper are, and many other important pieces for this topic. This is a very useful resource for my first body paragraph (as explained in my research proposal) to create a basis for how reports work in my field.

Brandeis University. "Key structure in heart cells that helps regulate heart contractions illuminated by research." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 4 March 2014. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/03/140304141740.htm>.

This article is a report about using fluorescence to identify proteins, specifically in the cells of the heart that regulate heart contractions. This is key to scientists for developing heart disease treatments as well as understanding heart disease as a total. This is a good example of a report in the field of biochemistry. It is not as in-depth as the lab report outline is however it is a really good example of being concise and still effectively communicating there results and will be good for the second main body paragraph. This is a great example of scientists communicating their findings to the science world.

University of Cambridge. "Crop-infecting virus forces aphids to spread disease." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 5 December 2013. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/12/131205102323.htm

This is an article about aphids and how they spread viruses to plants, and how scientists are trying ways to stop the spread of this mosaic virus. The scientists are collaborating with others and received a grant for their research in hopes to strengthen developing countries agriculture, specifically Africa’s. The article will be used for either my second body paragraph or third one, and could be used for both. It is a good example of both a report of finding, and use of collaboration between scientists.

"Design Research: The Scientific Method." Design Research: The Scientific Method. 12 Mar. 2014 <http://depts.washington.edu/rural/RURAL/design/scimethod.html#communicating>.

This article has a great information on some of the questions that you could be asking yourself when you want to communicate your results after performing an experiment. It has some questions that you can ask yourself when you’re trying to make a lab report that will have information on how to write what you did in an experiment as well as some questions for how tocommunicate your results. I can use this article to help out with my first two body paragraphs mainly and it will be used so.

"Survival of the Extraordinary – A Fly With Tricky* Wings." Dot Earth Survival of the Extraordinary A Fly With Tricky Wings Comments. 12 Mar. 2014 <http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/11/04/survival-of-the-extraordinary-a-fly-with-ants-on-its-wings/?ref=biologyandbiochemistry>.

From this source, there is information about a fly they have discovered that has painted images of jumping spiders on its wings. At first it was thought that the images were ants, but a specialist in ants and spiders thinks they are these spiders. I think this will be used in my last body paragraph and is a good example of how scientists communicate with one another to get the correct details of information they saw. Initially some people thought these colorings were to depict ants, however after another scientist added his observations, people think that it is not of ants but of spiders.

"Experimental Design Outline." Experimental Design Outline. 12 Mar. 2014 <http://www.zoology.ubc.ca/~bio310/121T_files/06S_experiment.htm>.

The article explains what it takes to create a good experimental design and has certain paragraphs about what makes a good hypothesis and other factors that go along the lines of an experimental procedure. This source is perfect for my first body paragraph and will be helpful when describing how scientists in my field look to setup an experimental design and how to make one better which is why this source is useful.

"The Challenge of Communicating Science to the Public." The Challenge of Communicating Science to the Public. 12 Mar. 2014 <https://www.physics.ohio-state.edu/~wilkins/writing/Resources/essays/sci_comm.html>.

The title of this article says it all as far as what it is about. It is a really good piece about how it is a challenge for a lot of scientists to communicate to the public and what scientists should be doing to do so. It also talks about how professors should be preparing their future scientists to communicate to the public. This will be primarily used in my third body paragraph and I am considering referencing it in my second but am not sure exactly.

Visual #1:

"BioPerspectives." GEN. 12 Mar. 2014 <http://www.genengnews.com/bioperspectives/science-leadership-project-teamsgroup-dynamics-and-team-failures/4853>.

This image is going to be used as a visual for my last body paragraph which touches on scientists collaborating with one another. It is a good example of how scientists talk and share information to gain new understandings or insights.

Visual #2:

"Redirect Notice." Redirect Notice. 12 Mar. 2014 <https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&docid=-MKe5Z_eeB-A5M&tbnid=rJZ3xOVSdXFKcM:&ved=0CAYQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.abcteach.com%2Fdirectory%2Fclip-art-graphic-organizers-9832-2-1&ei=r7ogU7S1NOS2yAGVlYGQDQ&psig=AFQjCNGH1IwAmiiwu_qU8IBpzqYdqZzQfg&ust=1394740242596321>.

This is a great example of an outline for a lab report/experiment design. It is a basic template that hits on a lot of points that I will be making in my first and second body paragraphs so it will most likely be featured in one of those two and will tie into what I’m saying at the time. It also helps the reader visualize a sort of outline that I will be describing.

Textual Analysis

Ryan Swenson

“Textual Analysis”

Scientists at the University of Exeter have been studying cell division in fruit flies and have found information that could be a potential link to an underlying cause of cancer. They wrote this because they wanted to be able to communicate with other scientists that they may have found a link to a cause of cancer and show them that there information was legitimate through a few different ways. The article was written to inform the science world, as well as anyone in the general interest field of cancer or cell division. The author of this article effectively conveyed his purpose to this specific audience. It is so effectively conveyed because the diction that the author uses incorporates certain appeal to the audience, as well as having a bulk of scientific substance to back up there implications and to establish more credibility.

Use of diction is an important way that an author can use to adequately lead the audience to the purpose. The use of diction also creates certain appeals which in turn help strengthen the purpose that the author is trying to illustrate. In the article, the author creates ethos by the use of many scientific and lengthy words, some of which include “microtubule, spindle, molecular, Augmin, chromosomes, arbitrary, amplifying”. These words establish a lot of credibility to the author because when the audience is reading this article and they see scientific and lengthy words, then it makes the audience impressed and the author seem like he knows what he’s talking about. By using these words to create a sense of validity the purpose is strengthened because now the targeted audience can build a sense of trust that can go a long way when trying to persuade someone to accept new ideas/information.

The diction used by the author also establishes emotional appeal to his audience. By persuading the audience emotionally, it evokes feelings that are useful to the author when conveying his article’s purpose to whom he targets. Words used such as “remarkable, new, innovative, first, currently” create a feeling of hope and forwardness with science through the discoveries. The possibility of this new research and the fact that it currently is going on, is hopeful to the audience which helps them remember the purpose more in depth. The author links his research to a possible underlying cause of cancer, which can give those wanting to cure cancer and those affected by cancer some hope that one day this disease may be stopped. That is an example of the effectiveness that this word choice had on the emotions of the audience. In some cases how these words are organized into structured sentences and paragraphs strengthen the author’s points.

Another useful strategy to achieve the goal of explaining the purpose well to his target audience is how much scientific data present, and how well the data is explained. This creates a lot of substance which is another way of strengthening his purpose and creating even more credibility. In scientific research papers, you want to be very concise without leaving too much information out. There was a very good balance of information and explanation. There are two specific paragraphs in which this balance can be seen. The first of these two is the second paragraph and the second is the fourth paragraph. They both do a good job at including the facts they discovered, with also description of how everything that was found worked. The use of substance here overall was very effective for communicating his findings to the intended audience.

From the use of extensive and useful substance, to using word choice to appeal to the audience differently, the author used them efficiently and properly to support his purpose and make it apparent. These choices that the author used helped him convey that the research done by this group has a potential insight on one of the possible hidden links to cancer.

MLA citation- Association for International Cancer Research. "Using fruit flies to help understand cancer."ScienceDaily, 22 Oct. 2010. Web. 22 Jan. 2014.

Textual Anaylsis Article Link

 http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140102113142.htm

Final Visual Rhetoric

Ryan Swenson

“Visual Rhetoric”

            I know what you’re thinking when you see my image. You’re thinking how marijuana has anything to do with my field of choice. I am a biochemistry major and we look up the chemistry of life. Marijuana contains many chemicals that have been scientifically tested to treat numerous types of problems such as treating glaucoma patients, reducing effects of Tourette’s Syndrome, and is now being linked to the stop of cancerous tumors growing, specifically lung cancer. Also, being from Minnesota, the legalization of marijuana for medical use is a pressing topic that’s going on right now. This picture’s message is pro-legalization and how the legal substances in America may be more dangerous.

            The creator of this artwork has a clear message in this visual. He is comparing marijuana to tobacco and alcohol. As you may know, marijuana is an illegal drug (for the most part), and alcohol and tobacco are legal. He starts the image by splitting the legal and illegal substances onto two halves of the image. This is to create separation between the legal and illegal drugs which helps strengthen the message by making the visual easier to understand. Then he uses headings that get the audience thinking about the image more. He puts “Legal?” on the legal substances side and “Illegal?” on the illegal substances side. Of course, the obvious answer to the questions is yes for both (Again speaking generally for marijuana). But that’s not all the poster has as far as words go. The choice he made after that was to put the number of deaths related to each substance below this and couples them with pictures of the drug that relates. By including the pictures it adds clarity and also really helps you keep in mind what substances you think should be legal and illegal. Also, this added clarity is a huge element to a visual aid in this argument because when the visual is clearer than the audience can further understand the message that the author is trying to convey. The number of deaths with the picture also does an important thing here to help convey his message. It shows you how many deaths are associated with the substance. Marijuana to this day has had no confirmed deaths from use/overuse. Alcohol and tobacco have accounted for millions of deaths not only in America, but in the rest of the world. So again, you’re going back to the headings and thinking, which substances should be under which heading? The last visual in this picture that really helps convey his message is that he uses certain colors for certain purposes. The “Legal?” heading is black and the “Illegal?” heading is white. Furthermore, the color background under the “Legal?” heading is white and the “Illegal?” heading has a background that is black on its half. This creates contrast in the picture which is a trick of the creator of this visual. The trick is that the “Illegal?” heading is white which happens to be the background color of the “Legal?” heading. And vice versa for the “Legal?” heading and “Illegal?” background. He uses this to indirectly pair what he thinks should be the illegal and legal substances on the poster. Having “Known Medicinal Qualities” under the no deaths recorded part of the visual is a way that the he gets the viewer involved with the image. If the viewer doesn’t know the known medicinal qualities, then there is a decent chance the viewer may be more apt to go on their own and look up the medical benefits marijuana has to offer. Also, if they know some of the benefits, it can really connect some dots in their brain that marijuana has caused no recorded deaths and has medical qualities which could persuade them to change or strengthen their opinion. The creator of the image is pressing his opinion here that the legal drugs should be illegal and the illegal drugs should be legal. The use of all of these techniques is specifically chosen for the type of audience that he is targeting.

            The author’s message is channeled to a broad range of audiences. The audience could be as simple as an everyday person, to as specific to government officials. With the US under a lot of change state to state on legalizing marijuana for medical use, it could be used as an effective visual for government officials trying to get some more information on the danger of the substance, and also trying to persuade voters to see the potential danger of the illegal substance. Due to the simplicity of the image however, you can assume that this is more of an informational visual, which is more for educating others on how marijuana doesn’t kill anyone and how many deaths and how lethal the legal substances the US has to offer to the adult American.

            The visual overall is quite effective in portraying its message. The creator of the image does so using many techniques to convey to the expected audience what the main point that he made it for. It uses factual information as one way of effective portrayal of the message. When making a visual that is persuasive it always can be further communicated by having a shocking fact that can really wow or grasp the viewer’s attention. The use of number of deaths associated with each is a very powerful fact that can be a real eye-opener to those who are unaware of it. Also most Americans will weigh their opinion on certain aspects of their beliefs such as if it will bring harm to others amongst other facts, like if it helps others. Another way that the maker of the visual effectively conveys his message is by asking the simple question in the heading of the visual on each half. It questions the audience and makes them think about what they believe should be legal or not. The way that the question is short and to the point is also a good attention grabber that can help gain focus the message that he is trying to convey. And building on the heading, the colors associated with each heading (as detailed before) sort of plays a mind game on the viewer and could potentially persuade the viewer of a more positive outlook on the illegal substance. This is also an effective way to convey the overall message. Lastly, he includes how there are known medical uses to the marijuana side of the poster. This again is another effective way to communicate his message to his audience by getting them involved with the viewer, which is a really important trait when making a visual. The more you get the audience thinking about your subject, the better you’ve done at creating an effective image.

            Through the use of multiple techniques such as getting the viewer involved through facts and the use of qustions, as well as choice colors and pictures is why this visual is an effective piece at conveying the message that marijuana should be at least just as legal as other substances Americans deem legal.

Source: "Tobacco and Alcohol Cause Over 7.5 Million Deaths Per Year |Natural Cures Not Medicine." Natural Cures Not Medicine. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Feb. 2014.

Edited Rough Draft Before Peer Review

Ryan Swenson

“Visual Rhetoric”

            I know what you’re thinking when you see my image. You’re thinking how marijuana has anything to do with my field of choice. I am a biochemistry major and we look up the chemistry of life. Marijuana contains many chemicals that have been scientifically tested to treat numerous types of problems such as treating glaucoma patients, reducing effects of Tourette’s Syndrome, and is now being linked to the stop of cancerous tumors growing, specifically lung cancer. Also, being from Minnesota, the legalization of marijuana for medical use is a pressing topic that’s going on right now.

            The creator of this artwork has a clear message in this visual. He is comparing marijuana to tobacco and alcohol. As you may know, marijuana is an illegal drug (for the most part), and alcohol and tobacco are legal. He starts the image by splitting the legal and illegal substances onto two halves of the image. This is to create separation between the legal and illegal drugs which helps strengthen the message by making the visual easier to understand. Then he uses headings that get the audience thinking about the image more. He puts “Legal?” on the legal substances side and “Illegal?” on the illegal substances side. Of course, the obvious answer to the questions is yes for both (Again speaking generally for marijuana). But that’s not all the poster has as far as words go. The choice he made after that was to put the number of deaths related to each substance below this and couples them with pictures of the drug that relates. By including the pictures it adds clarity and also really helps you keep in mind what substances you think should be legal and illegal. Also, this added clarity is a huge element to a visual aid in this argument because when the visual is clearer than the audience can further understand the message that the author is trying to convey. The number of deaths with the picture also does an important thing here to help convey his message. It shows you how many deaths are associated with the substance. Marijuana to this day has had no confirmed deaths from use/overuse. Alcohol and tobacco have accounted for millions of deaths not only in America, but in the rest of the world. So again, you’re going back to the headings and thinking, which substances should be under which heading? The last visual in this picture that really helps convey his message is that he uses certain colors for certain purposes. The “Legal?” heading is black and the “Illegal?” heading is white. Furthermore, the color background under the “Legal?” heading is white and the “Illegal?” heading has a background that is black on its half. This creates contrast in the picture which is a trick of the creator of this visual. The trick is that the “Illegal?” heading is white which happens to be the background color of the “Legal?” heading. And vice versa for the “Legal?” heading and “Illegal?” background. He uses this to indirectly pair what he thinks should be the illegal and legal substances on the poster. Having “Known Medicinal Qualities” under the no deaths recorded part of the visual is a way that the he gets the viewer involved with the image. If the viewer doesn't know the known medicinal qualities, then there is a decent chance the viewer may be more apt to go on their own and look up the medical benefits marijuana has to offer. Also, if they know some of the benefits, it can really connect some dots in their brain that marijuana has caused no recorded deaths and has medical qualities which could persuade them to change or strengthen their opinion. The creator of the image is pressing his opinion here that the legal drugs should be illegal and the illegal drugs should be legal. The use of all of these techniques is specifically chosen for the type of audience that he is targeting.

            The author’s message is channeled to a broad range of audiences. The audience could be as simple as an everyday person, to as specific to government officials. With the US under a lot of change state to state on legalizing marijuana for medical use, it could be used as an effective visual for government officials trying to get some more information on the danger of the substance, and also trying to persuade voters to see the potential danger of the illegal substance. Due to the simplicity of the image however, you can assume that this is more of an informational visual, which is more for educating others on how marijuana doesn't kill anyone and how many deaths and how lethal the legal substances the US has to offer to the adult American.

            The visual overall is quite effective in portraying its message. The creator of the image does so using many techniques to convey to the expected audience what the main point that he made it for. It uses factual information as one way of effective portrayal of the message. When making a visual that is persuasive it always can be further communicated by having a shocking fact that can really wow or grasp the viewer’s attention. The use of number of deaths associated with each is a very powerful fact that can be a real eye-opener to those who are unaware of it. Also most Americans will weigh their opinion on certain aspects of their beliefs such as if it will bring harm to others among other facts, like if it helps others. Another way that the maker of the visual effectively conveys his message is by asking the simple question in the heading of the visual on each half. It questions the audience and makes them think about what they believe should be legal or not. The way that the question is short and to the point is also a good attention grabber that can help gain focus the message that he is trying to convey. And building on the heading, the colors associated with each heading (as detailed before) sort of plays a mind game on the viewer and could potentially persuade the viewer of a more positive outlook on the illegal substance. This is also an effective way to convey the overall message. Lastly, he adds “Known Medicinal Qualities” to the marijuana side of the poster. This again is another effective way to communicate his message to his audience by getting them involved with the viewer, which is a really important trait when making a visual. The more you get the audience thinking about your subject, the better you've done at creating an effective image.

            Through the use of multiple techniques such as getting the viewer involved through facts and the use of questions, as well as choice colors and pictures is why this visual is an effective piece at conveying the message that marijuana should be at least just as legal as other substances Americans deem legal.

Visual Analysis Rough Draft

Ryan Swenson

“Visual Rhetoric”

            I know what you’re thinking when you see my image. You’re thinking how marijuana has anything to do with my field of choice. I am a biochemistry major and we look up the chemistry of life. Marijuana contains many chemicals that have been scientifically tested to treat numerous types of problems such as treating glaucoma patients, reducing effects of Tourette’s Syndrome, and is now being linked to the stop of cancerous tumors growing, specifically lung cancer. Also, being from Minnesota, the legalization of marijuana for medical use is a pressing topic that’s going on right now.

            The creator of this artwork has a clear message in this visual. He is comparing marijuana to tobacco and alcohol. As you may know, marijuana is an illegal drug (for the most part), and alcohol and tobacco are legal. He starts the image by splitting the legal and illegal substances onto two halves of the image. This is to create separation between the legal and illegal drugs which helps strengthen the message by making the visual easier to understand. Then he uses headings that get the audience thinking about the image more. He puts “Legal?” on the legal substances side and “Illegal?” on the illegal substances side. Of course, the obvious answer to the questions is yes (Again speaking generally for marijuana). But that’s not all the poster has as far as words go. The choice he made after that was to put the number of deaths related to each substance below this and couples them with pictures of the drug that relates. By including the pictures it adds clarity and also really helps you keep in mind what substances you think should be legal and illegal. Also, this added clarity is a huge element to a visual aid in this argument because when the visual is more clear than the audience can further understand the message that the author is trying to convey. The number of deaths with the picture also does an important thing here to help convey his message. It shows you how many deaths are associated with the substance. Marijuana to this day has had no confirmed deaths from use/overuse. Alcohol and tobacco have accounted for millions of deaths not only in America, but in the rest of the world. So again, you’re going back to the headings and thinking, which substances should be under which heading? The last visual in this picture that really helps convey his message is that he uses certain colors for certain purposes. The “Legal?” heading is black and the “Illegal?” heading is white. Furthermore, the color background under the “Legal?” heading is white and the “Illegal?” heading has a background that is black on its half. This creates contrast in the picture which is a trick of the creator of this visual. The trick is that the “Illegal?” heading is white which happens to be the background color of the “Legal?” heading. And vice versa for the “Legal?” heading and “Illegal?” background. Having “Known Medicinal Qualities” under the no deaths recorded part of the visual is a way that the maker of the visual gets the viewer involved with the image. If the viewer doesn’t know the known medicinal qualities, then there is a decent chance the viewer may be more apt to go on their own and look up the medical benefits marijuana has to offer. Also, if they know some of the benefits, it can really connect some dots in their brain that marijuana has caused no recorded deaths and has medical qualities which could persuade them to change or strengthen their opinion. The creator of the image is pressing his opinion here that the legal drugs should be illegal and the illegal drugs should be legal. The use of all of these techniques is specifically chosen for the type of audience that he is targeting.

            The author’s message is channeled to a broad range of audiences. The audience could be as simple as an everyday person, to as specific to government officials. With the US under a lot of change state to state, on legalizing marijuana for medical use, it could be used as an effective visual for government officials trying to get some more information on the danger of the substance, and also trying to persuade voters to see the potential danger of the illegal substance. Due to the simplicity of the image however, you can assume that this is more of an informational visual, which is more for educating others on how marijuana doesn’t kill anyone and how many deaths and how lethal the legal substances the US has to offer to the adult American.

            The visual overall is quite effective in portraying its message. The creator of the image does so using many techniques to convey to the expected audience what the main point that he made it for. It uses factual information as one way of effective portrayal of the message. When making a visual that is persuasive it always can be further communicated by having a shocking fact that can really wow or grasp the viewer’s attention. The use of number of deaths associated with each is a very powerful fact that can be a real eye-opener to those who are unaware of it. Also most Americans will weigh their opinion on certain aspects of their beliefs such as if it will bring harm to others amongst other facts, like if it helps others. Another way that the maker of the visual effectively conveys his message is by asking the simple question in the heading of the visual on each half. It questions the audience and makes them think about what they believe should be legal or not. The way that the question is short and to the point is also a good attention grabber that can help gain focus the message that he is trying to convey. And going on about the heading, the colors associated (as detailed before) with each heading sort of plays a mind game on the viewer and could potentially persuade the viewer of a more positive outlook on the illegal substance. This is also an effective way to convey the overall message. Lastly, he adds “Known Medicinal Qualities” to the marijuana side of the poster. This again is another effective way to communicate his message to his audience by getting them involved with the viewer, which is a really important trait when making a visual. The more you get the audience thinking about your subject, the better you’ve done at creating an effective image.

            Through the use of multiple techniques such as getting the viewer involved with facts, colors, and pictures, and also getting the viewer’s mind involved with the topic by asking he/she a question and giving them facts or topics to look up to further their understanding is why this visual is an effective piece at conveying the message that marijuana should be at least just as legal as other substances Americans deem legal.

Visual Communication

The author is trying to convey that marijuana should be legal, and tobacco and alcohol should illegal. There is a broad range of people that this message could be directed toward. The author is most likely trying to push the legalization of marijuana. I would guess that it is to your average voter or maybe a government official of sorts. This however could be directed to just about anyone.

Ryan Swenson

“Worst Rhetoric Experience”

            My junior year I was in a language and composition class, and we started a topic of persuasive rhetoric. I honestly still have no clue what it is, but I had to analyze a bunch of writings, and then create my own piece of persuasive rhetoric. It doesn’t help too that I extremely disliked my teacher so I initially put forward my worst attitude toward the assignment itself. We had a few weeks to type the paper.

            Being the genious I am, I waited and waited and waited. Then soon enough it was the night before due date and we had a paper due. I wisely waited until it was past dark and started it when I should’ve been going to sleep. The sleep part didn’t really matter because it was high school and you can sleep through class everyday anyways. But here I was, 12 at night typing something I have no idea about. I scrapped together what looked like a formidable paper, but I knew it wasn’t going to get a good grade. I went to it first hour the next morning and turned it in. Knowing I probably got a D at best, I wasn’t really looking forward to it being graded.

            Fast forward a little less than a month to that same first hour class. The paper I completely forgot about was there on my desk. I wasn’t even nervous/scared/etc because that night when I typed it I knew it was going to be bad anways, so fuck it I figured. I got an F, and it was one of those papers that just had writing all over it and “helpful advice” on how I could have done it better. It wasn’t the end of the world though, because, just like in any other high school course, she gave out enough busy work throughout the semester where the “big” papers are just an above average assignment in the scheme of things.

            To this day, I still really have no clue what I even wrote about or what persuasive rhetoric is. I could definitely give an educated guess as to what it is, but I honestly am not too concerned that that will be relevant to me at any point of my life.

Oh and just for some more emphasis, I extremely disliked my English teacher that year.

Ryan Swenson

“Summary Reflection”

          We wrote a summary the past few weeks on an article that pertained to our major. This is the first official summary I’ve written. For most of the assignments for high school, it either involved figuring out what an author meant in a book, or reading something that my teacher decided to teach us. I’ve used strategies involved with writing summaries before, mainly taking main ideas/points from a piece of writing and writing those down. But nothing like an official summary.

          The most challenging part of the process was a combination of the fact that I’ve never written one before and the main one that I chose to do a summary of a shorter article. I chose the article because it was interesting to me and was pertinent to my major. The problem was that it was not that long at all. I was presented with the challenge of summarizing an article into something longer than was actually there. At first, I noticed I repeated myself, but then after some editing, both peer and individual, I came out with a final piece that I was happy with. I always re-read my article to see what I was leaving out and in. I tried to make it as concise and to the point as possible, even though in most scientific pieces, they are already to the point.

          Hands down the most important thing that I learned from this article and that of writing in my field, was that there are two main types in my eyes. One of that is writing actual lab procedures, with the other being reporting the findings of those labs/experiments. I read an article on the latter of the types and it showed me that there isn’t a lot of room for filler talk, just get down to business and say what is needed to be said, while having enough to convey what results you found and what implications it could have for the future. This article was a good example for me to see what writing in my field looked like. ( I don't know how to double space)

Ryan Swenson

“Article Summary”

            On January 2^nd, 2014, scientists have been working with fruit flies to further our understanding of one of the worst diseases to this day, cancer. Cancer kills millions of people each year. Fruit flies are used in many different scientific applications because of their quick generation times amongst other reasons. Dr. James Wakefield, Daniel Hayward, and Dr. Jeremey Metz, were the main scientists that were involved with this study. They were working at the University of Exeter, and discovered that when cells go through division they express a lot of room for change and are quite flexible in doing so. This has a good chance of helping understand some of the early causes of cancer in the cells. The process first looks at the roots that help move organelles through routes.

            These roots are specifically called microtubule spindles. They occur and aid in the cell where the DNA separates during cell division, resulting in two new cells. The study showed that there were numerous routes in the way that these spindles would form. The next step was to really visualize what was happening, and they did so by using very in-depth, detailed images, that specifically looked at manipulating genes and proteins of the fruit fly. This is a new and novel way of helping to understand the way that cancer develops early on, and the pathways are pivotal to visualize development.

            These researchers discovered that there were multiple paths in which the spindles could be formed. When they would remove one of these paths, they also discovered that it would increase the likelihood of one of the other pathways that develop these microtubule spindles. And in studying these pathways, this team found a protein that was common throughout each one, augmin. This whole study is all new understanding of how the spindle can form in many different ways in fruit flies. Before this research, it was unknown.

Previously, scientists everywhere assumed that the microtubule spindles would form from the centrosomes and then split when the chromosomes get separated and a new cell forms, but now their ideas have been altered. The research shows that the spindles can form from actual chromosomes themselves, as well as some other parts of the main body of a cell. None of this was known until this experiment was done.

            Augmin, as mentioned earlier, as the common protein found in all these pathways for spindle formation, is a factor of the microtubule spindle that needs to be present in order for these to form. This was an interesting part that the scientists discovered.

            These researchers now think that cancer may be caused from disruptions of some of these pathways. When none of them are disturbed, it could now mean that you have a lower risk of acquiring cancer. And conversely, if many of these pathways are destroyed, than you could be at a higher risk for cancer. This makes sense because you then have fewer ways that the microtubule spindles can form, and thus be more susceptible to errors in cell division that could lead to cancerous cells that begin to divide and grow into tumors.

            As promising as this study is beginning to look, it is however all theoretical at this point. Dr. James Wakefield and the group plan to further investigate this process and see if it can lead to better understand one of the worst diseases that is affecting the human population to this day.

MLA citation- Association for International Cancer Research. "Using fruit flies to help understand cancer."ScienceDaily, 22 Oct. 2010. Web. 22 Jan. 2014.
(I don't know how to double space, sorry. It's 2-pages though)

"How Does Writing in Your Field Work?"

             

               To figure out how articles in my field are written I would do a few things. First off, I would e-mail or contact my advisor and see if he had any insight or ideas on achieving this answer. Secondly, I would use the internet and look up to see if there is a specific way that my field has of writing, whether it be a template, outline, etc. Lastly, after using these options, I would browse the internet and look/read for commonalities in articles that are pertinent to my field then using that information, structure my writings after them. That is how I'd go about finding out how writing works in my field.

"Sources W/ One MLA Citation"

Source1-       http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/10/101022082454.htm

              Source2-       http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140102113142.htm

MLA citation- Association for International Cancer Research. "Using fruit flies to help understand cancer."ScienceDaily, 22 Oct. 2010. Web. 22 Jan. 2014.

Ryan Swenson

“Thought Piece #2”

            As I was reading Rosenberg’s article at the beginning, I felt a lot of the same struggles that she encountered. I often would read paragraph after paragraph and begin to get enveloped into my thoughts and soon realize that I had read almost an entire page without actually understanding it. I’d always have to go back a page and then start reading from there only to go back to wandering off again. This seems like a constant struggle that I have at times with reading pieces that I find rather uninteresting. And after a little while of this battle, I’d eventually wave the white flag and surrender to my homework that was due for the time, simply out of a combination of this boredom/frustration.

            What I really liked about Rosenberg’s article was the strategy that was presented by her. Specifically about the parts of reading the intro, section headings, then conclusion. And after reading those, trying to figure out the main point or argument that the writer is trying to convey. I think that when I’m reading scholarly articles, I often get lost in all of the context and really struggle to even realize what the writer is trying to get across halfway through. This strategy will definitely be used by me in the future because I think it will not only get me involved with the material at hand, but it will better my understanding of the article the second time around when I actually read the article.

            A lot of the time students will be quick to just read and skim through any assigned reading they have and then try to bring up little facts and tidbits that they picked up along the way to tie into their assignments, without even knowing exactly what was going on with the article. Some readings are going to take more time, and students, especially myself, need to understand that. Scholarly articles are going to take time to read and should be read as if you yourself were a scholar. They weren’t written to be quickly read over and have bits of information gleaned from them. That’s what I really got out of this reading, and I think that it really will be helpful to further my reading skills as I continue on my college career. I got the most use of the strategy that I mentioned earlier of pre-reading the article to get main concepts from it.

(This is over a page double-spaced, I do not know how to double space on the blog)

Ryan Swenson

“Portrait of a Writer”

            In Kent Haruf’s written piece he describes all sorts of places where writers from past and present prefer to work in. Whether it be in a basement, or leaning over a refrigerator, it is the writer’s preference that helps them concentrate to get their works done. For me, when I write I definitely prefer to be somewhere secluded from other people. I like silence and to be alone with my thoughts when I am writing. I can have music on or headphones in, as long as I’m the only one in my thoughts then I’m alright. If the weather permits, I’d love to be able to write outside. I like the outdoors, especially on a cool summer day with a slight breeze. Laying down in the soft green grass with those conditions are when I am at peace with life. I love hearing all of the sounds of nature and all the sights it has to offer. I also love rainy days and being able to be right next to a window when I’m writing. I like the sound of the rain as it hits the window. It soothes me and is relaxing whenever I am stressing about finishing some type of work. The problem is I’ve always lived somewhere where it is simply too cold for more than half the year to be in that situation or any other type of nice, warm weather. So I often find myself secluded in my bedroom, or now, in my dorm room. If my roommate is present then I throw in the headphones or if he is gone sometimes I’ll just sit and be quiet with my thoughts. I like to be in a calm state whenever I am about to write any essay or paper. It helps me think clearly and not get distracted by the other choices that college has to offer. When I’m in my zone is when I seem to be able to write the best. If I ever get some sort of writer’s block, I often can recognize it right away. From there, I often will take a break and just not think about the topic or whatever it may be that I am working on. My break could involve getting a snack or a drink, turning on the TV for a few minutes, or even resting my eyes for a little. I just need to calm down and really relax to be able to write smoothly and efficiently. After, I’ve done so I can really get back into the swing of things by reading what I have written and seeing where I can go from there or try and brainstorm new ideas that I haven’t thought of yet which really gets the process going again.

            Another aspect that really makes writing more interesting to me is topics. In almost every class except one my junior year of high school, I had to write about topics that I quite frankly didn’t give a s*** about. This made writing especially difficult for me because as is I don’t already like writing that much, it didn’t help one little bit that I had to write about boring topics or readings that I either didn’t gain any useful knowledge from or just plain thought was a waste of my time. I really don’t like being forced to write a certain length paper on something that I in the first place despise. On top of that I really, really hate when on top of that they make you have a certain structure, style, and/or format that they require you to do in your paper. Like are you seriously making me write about a topic that you chose, then make me write this topic in a way you want me to write it? That always frustrated me because it always seemed that if I had an interesting topic that I found interesting, then I could really create some interesting pieces of writing. On top of that if I could write freely (Obviously have some structure if I were to turn it in) instead of having to worry about every little sentence and punctuation in my paper then writing would be a more enjoyable and less frustrating. I feel like in writing there should be no set structure like an introduction, body, conclusion, etc. I understand how that could help others follow along with your writings, however, I think that writing in itself should come from inspiration that you draw from topics you enjoy, and, with that, the structure should come from what you feel is an appropriate way to present your own work and not what others think of you. Teachers always would tell other students and myself at the beginning of the year/semester that from reading our papers they would recognize our style and type of writing, but I would always put that into question when they were handing out a writing assignment that they had a required format that you have to have in order to get the grade you want to receive. Then to further that they make you include a certain number of sources to cite and how many times you have to quote your sources. So where does my own style come into this? It never made sense to me.

            Now that I’m done with my rant I’d like to include what makes me the writer I am today. For me I tend to draw my future works on examples I’ve seen from the past. The information/advice that I’ve received in the past, I will then use in future works. Then once I get critique from that work, I try to constantly improve. But that’s an aspect of English that definitely gets me angry. It seems like you can always improve and what you’re doing can always be better. I suppose you can view that in a pessimistic view or an optimistic view. The pessimistic is that you’re writing will never be the best it can. However, the optimistic would be that with each piece that I write, my writing is getting stronger. I’ve tended to be more of a pessimist of this because as is English never tickled my fancy. But I suppose those two views can be applicable to almost every aspect of life. Maybe I’m being difficult because I always consider myself a math and science guy. If I get stuck on a problem in math I’ll go over my work and look for mistakes but in English when I get stuck in either papers or any work really I get angry and begin to question why it is important or why I have to do what I do. It’s just that with math you know that if you put an addition sign where a minus sign was, you can easily find and change that then move on. English however, you could make an entire paper, then realize that your organization might be a disaster, or you’re straying off topic a lot towards the middle and the end, and now you need to start your entire paper over. I do sound extremely lazy with those last few sentences, but if you don’t have a love for a certain topic, subject, etc. then it does make writing seem like the worst chore of all for me. I can’t stand pointlessly writing about what an author means in chapter when it’s a boring piece to me in the first place. If I could choose a book that I had a general interest for then it’d be much better. Look at me, I was gonna talk about me as a writer and again, I find myself in another paragraph of ranting.

(This was over 3 pages double-spaced, I don’t know how to make this double-spaced on the blog)

            

Ryan Swenson

“Portrait of a Writer”

            In Kent Haruf’s written piece he describes all sorts of places where writers from past and present prefer to work in. Whether it be in a basement, or leaning over a refrigerator, it is the writer’s preference that helps them concentrate to get their works done. For me, when I write I definitely prefer to be somewhere secluded from other people. I like silence and to be alone with my thoughts when I am writing. I can have music on or headphones in, as long as I’m the only one in my thoughts then I’m alright. If the weather permits, I’d love to be able to write outside. I like the outdoors, especially on a cool summer day with a slight breeze. Laying down in the soft green grass with those conditions are when I am at peace with life. I love hearing all of the sounds of nature and all the sights it has to offer. I also love rainy days and being able to be right next to a window when I’m writing. I like the sound of the rain as it hits the window. It soothes me and is relaxing whenever I am stressing about finishing some type of work. The problem is I’ve always lived somewhere where it is simply too cold for more than half the year to be in that situation or any other type of nice, warm weather. So I often find myself secluded in my bedroom, or now, in my dorm room. If my roommate is present then I throw in the headphones or if he is gone sometimes I’ll just sit and be quiet with my thoughts. I like to be in a calm state whenever I am about to write any essay or paper. It helps me think clearly and not get distracted by the other choices that college has to offer. When I’m in my zone is when I seem to be able to write the best. If I ever get some sort of writer’s block, I often can recognize it right away. From there, I often will take a break and just not think about the topic or whatever it may be that I am working on. My break could involve getting a snack or a drink, turning on the TV for a few minutes, or even resting my eyes for a little. I just need to calm down and really relax to be able to write smoothly and efficiently. After, I’ve done so I can really get back into the swing of things by reading what I have written and seeing where I can go from there or try and brainstorm new ideas that I haven’t thought of yet which really gets the process going again.

            So if I were to some up myself as a writer, I’d do so as having to be calmed and relaxed, definitely not stressed, and alone with my thoughts whether it be secluded outside in nature or in the comfort of my own bedroom or dorm room.

(This is over 1 page double space, I can't figure out how to make it double spaced on this blog)