"Writing Reflection:Researched Argument Part One"

            After writing the first few pages of my researched argument I feel more confident as my research grows. The first few pages were a little difficult attempting to reach the required page numbers, but I feel that I discovered for information to assist my argument. This causes me to worry that I will struggle making the final page requirements, but will hopefully be able to do so. I know that my research is growing stronger as I continue to discover more information on the topic. I know my writing was not as strong as it can be in the first few pages because my surroundings are not an excuse, but I know that I will need to work harder on the next section. I need to improve on the fluidity of my sentences. A lot of my sentences, especially in the first two paragraphs, are fragments and sounds like lists. I also added an example of a gluten-free store in my hometown. I understand that this example might not belong in the part one of the researched argument, but I can find other local examples to discuss later in the argument.  If I move this point to the research part two I will need to find another point that will support the argument in part one. Unfortunately my computer saved my paper in the wrong font making the paper fall a little short of the requirement. I will need to add some more information because of this. I will need to read through my part one to correct a few grammatical errors that I overlooked during the writing process. There were also a few word choices that I will need to look over to see if there is a better option. Fortunately my thesis fits well and I do not feel that I will have to change it in the future. I like the idea that you suggested of discussing why an athlete without celiac disease would want to go on a gluten-free diet. I plan on doing more research on that idea and adding it  to my part one and moving the example of the Nerdy Birdy to part two.

"Food and Culture Presentation Review"

            So far with the food and culture presentations I enjoyed Rachel’s and mine presentation on Germany. This is mainly because I am half German and was interested in learning more about the German culture. I learned that although they used to eat five meals, today they eat three meals a day just like we do in America. The only thing different was that in Germany they to have kaffee and kuchen on Sundays, which stands for coffee and cake. I remember when looking through pictures of the examples they all looks very delicious. I found it fascinating that the different countries had different foods centered around their holidays than what we have. For example, for Christmas in Germany they have fish for their main course, while in America we have turkey or ham. Their holiday, Fasching, would resemble Mardi Gras in America. For that celebration the Germans indulge in soft pretzels, kutteln, and deep fried donuts. While I did not find the soup with cow’s stomach very appetizing, I could enjoy the soft pretzels and fried donuts.  I thought it was random that they attempt to completely avoid garlic simply because of the smell. In Germany they are very proud of their bread making methods and one can find pretzels at basically any meal. Other foods that come from Germany include, the hamburger, deviled eggs, and beer. One candy that I enjoy that comes from Germany is the heribo gummy bears. Those are the only gummy bears that I will eat. I also enjoyed the video that we played showing the people attempting to pronounce and taste the different German foods. One restaurant that I forgot to talk about, but is well known, is the Hofbrauhaus. I have eaten at one of these both in America and in Germany. They are famous for their enormous beer mugs, huge pretzels, and other quality German food. They serve huge portions and have many different types of sausage. One will never leave that place with an empty stomach, unless they do not like German food. I hope one day to go back to Germany so I can once again sample other German foods and see the culture.

Writing Reflection -Paper Proposal

            If I could I had the time to make changes in my paper proposal I would take more time to look at my sources. My sources need improvement and I should have organized the ones I have and canceled out the ones that I feel wont work anymore. I know that I am in need of more sources and I should have spent time searching for more that supported my argument. The easiest part of the assignment was discussing the issues I encounter while working on my research and the problems I foresee I will have while writing the paper. I already knew that I was having trouble finding sources that incorporated, both the gluten-free diet and athletes on the gluten-free diet. Sources with on this topic are easy to find on the web, but when searching for credible sources not many appear. It was also easy to work out the details of the argument. I want to argue that a gluten-free diet will not affect an athlete’s performance, but I knew there would be stipulations in which the diet would work. These situations include when an athlete has celiac disease and when the diet causes the athlete to develop a healthy eating style. I can explain why both of these cases are successful with and without the presence of gluten. The hardest part of the assignment was attempting to figure out how I could find more credible sources related to my topic. Not having all of my sources made it difficult to describe how I am going to use each of my sources because I am not confident that I am still using all of them. I was also hard describing my argument in the beginning because of the stipulations. Once I determined how I could explain the stipulations it made my argument more effective. The paper proposal did help me narrow down my ideas for the final research paper. I was unsure that I could write the researched argument on my topic, but after the paper proposal I no longer feel the need to change my topic. I allowed me to work out the kinks, define what I am arguing, and know what I need to work on to make my argument effective.

Analyzation of Rhetorical Devices of a Food Related TED Talk

I chose to analyze the food related TED talk on Leather and meat without killing animals. The speaker, Andras Forgacs, effectively used rhetorical devices to argue his point that leathers and meat can be bio-fabricated to reduce the amount of animals being killed each year. Pathos is a main device that the speaker uses to persuade the audience in his favor. He states that animals are not just resources, they and live beings that are being killed everyday to meet our personal needs. By using this new process to make leather and meat no harms will come to the animals and they will be able to live a full life.  He also attacks the secrecy behind the slaughter factors and the abuse the animals receive. He explains that the new bio-fabrication process of using cells to create leather and meat will be in the public eye, unafraid of their opinions because there is nothing to hide. The speech is full of logos as he proves that creating the leather and meat from cells will result in humane and sustainable process. While he knows that it will be difficult for people to adjust to eating meat that is fabricated by cells, he pushes for the creation of level to be the gateway of the new process. Even when he first heard of the idea he believed it was insane, but if human tissues and organs can be created from cells, we should be able to do the same with animals. He also shows the point that with this process man can control the properties of the leather. Such properties include the thickness, the elasticity, the durability, and the transparency of the leather. The final point in his argument gave the most reason for attempting the new idea. He provided examples of leather fresh from the lab. He provides proof to his audience that an idea that they might view as insane is not only possible, but has successfully been carried out. Forhacs’s use of these rhetorical devices makes his argument extremely effective. The audience’s emotions cause them to want to provide an alternative process to prevent the unnecessary deaths of animals and stop the abuse they receive in the slaughterhouses. It is something that can be seen in full use in the future. We will look back at the old techniques and be embarrassed that we did not change our ways sooner.

Persuasive Letter

Paul Adam, a Pediatric Gastroenterologist, is a specialist in the area of gluten-free diets. He states that people suffering from celiac disease must follow a gluten-free diet because it is the only treatment as of now. Removing gluten from ones diet has made the symptoms of celiac disease fade away in most all cases. While we know that a gluten-free diet helps people with celiac disease, are there any benefits that come to athletes by following this fad diet.  Adam is unsure of the benefits that athletes would receive from following this diet plan. An athlete’s performance will not be affected by following a gluten-free diet. Only athletes with celiac disease will see positive side affects. If athletes saw any change in their performance after adapting to the gluten-free diet it was only because they had celiac disease, or they developed healthier eating habits and consumed less sugar. Athletes without gluten sensitivity should not follow this new fad diet because it can potentially be dangerous if not followed correctly. Athletes can become mal nourished due to the lack of carbohydrates and other important nutrients. As a dedicated athlete, why risk everything you have worked your whole life to obtain to experiment with a diet that could ruin your entire career. Anytime an athlete wants to change their eating habits to benefit health or performance, one should always do it under supervision of a nutritionist or a staff member. Research can be used as evidence to support that a gluten-free diet will not benefit athletes. Nutrition and athlete performance specialist, John Smith has been studying this topic for many years now. His research includes scientific background on gluten, celiac disease, and the diet itself, and observations on athletes who implemented the gluten-free diet into their training routine. Smith also states that there will be no performance enhancement for athletes who partake in this eating style. All research done to support athletes and the gluten-free diet is all speculation and hardly has any concrete evidence. With all signs pointing towards the ineffectiveness of the gluten-free diet on an athlete’s performance, there is no reason to change one’s eating habits. All in all the, this fad diet is not something that everyone should be implementing into their eating habits. People with a sensitivity to gluten are the only people who should remove gluten from their diets because it is the only known treatment of celiac disease.

Review of Rhetorical Appeals

Rhetorical Appeals are used in persuasive writing to aid in ones argument. Three main types of rhetorical appeals are ethos, logos, and pathos. Ethos adds to the speaker’s credibility. An example would be quoting a well-known doctor which credibility when writing on a medical topic. In my advertisement below the example of ethos is using Steve Jobs as the creator of the VHS player. Logos is appealing to the reader’s reason or logic. Examples of logos would be adding statistics or evidence in your writing. The example of logos in the VHS article is stating that research shows that the technology is the best there is. Pathos is appealing to the reader’s emotion. An example of this is the ASPCA commercial that target the audiences emotions. An example of pathos in the advertisement is the bond that the VHS player creates between family and friends. Calling all movie watchers! Forget watching all of yours movies on CD’s the vintage VHS players are back in style. Do not be the only one left out of this hot new trend. This VHS player has a new sleek style that everyone is talking about. Research has proven that the technology used in this VHS player is the best out there. Steve Jobs has been working on this project for many years in secret and is very proud of the results. When you get this VHS player you also get the Hunger Games tape collection. This VHS player will make you feel like you are in the games. Jobs described it as the most realistic environment one will ever receive from watching a tape. This will provide better family night activities and a thrilling experience when hanging out with friends. The VHS player is meant to enhance the bonds between loved ones and friends. Steve Jobs continues to improve us all with each one of his new inventions. You better act fast because this VHS player and collection of tapes will be gone as soon as they hit the market. If you miss out on this deal who knows how long until the next one comes around.

Review of Annotated Bibliography

            The purpose of an annotated bibliography is to review the information in the sources that you will be using in your research argument. Summarizing the information in the sources will allow you to be familiar with the information and easily figure out what information can be found in what source. When persuasively arguing a position on a controversial topic one needs to understand the history of the issue along with opinions from both sides of the argument before beginning. Annotated Bibliographies ensures that when researching for your topic you cover all the information that would best benefit your argument on the topic. When doing an annotated bibliography one might discover that there is not enough information to create a strong argument on the topic and would suggest you to change your topic. They can also assist in organizing all of your research for the paper. Instead of just having random notes and website links an annotated bibliography gives you a summary of the information under the name of the source. This will allow you to easily access the information and possibly limit time on finding the same information or rereading the source ever time because the information you are looking for could be in the summary. Annotated bibliographies also help make sure you actually read your source and know the information. Without doing ones students can just pick one sentence out of the source and cite it without truly knowing what the entire source is saying. There could be more information that could be beneficial to your argument that you look over because you did not actually read the source. Furthermore, reading the source shows that you know the topic thoroughly and can successfully argue a persuasive position on an important, controversial topic. All in all, annotated bibliographies allow you to review the information you know, organize your research and store it by topics. They are a way to show your teacher and or someone reading your paper that you have done thorough research and the information is credible. Anybody can use annotated bibliographies. The more one focuses on a specific topic the more they may use them and compile them to keep a record of the information. For examples, scholars would have a larger database of annotated bibliographies than a freshman in college would.