Counterintuitive Spring 2024

Forget What You Know

Changing the way someone thinks isn’t as easy as it sounds. I’m not talking about our opinions, or our beliefs, or our personal philosophies. No, what I’m talking about is the effortless kind of thought that comes to us instantly. This kind of thought requires no effort. This is the kind of thought that seems so parallel with instinct that you start to wonder if it can even be taught. Just as a physics professor would see a wall pushing back the same amount of force as the person leaning on it. Or how a piano player naturally transposes every song they hear to a C scale. But how are these strange phenomena planted in our brain? I think it takes a lot of time of being surrounded by that specific kind of thinking.

I’ve started to notice, after working for a few years with an hourly salary, that I can look at monetary value and hours of my life interchangeably. If I see something worth $60, my first thought is how that’s six hours of my life I’m about to spend. I doubt that many other people think in the same way. But the point is that I don’t spend extra time trying to calculate the numbers, I just instinctively think in those terms. I think money in general can be a very powerful tool in shaping the way we think.

I find the concept of currencies to be astounding and yet terrifying at the same time. Currency in general has practically dictated the lives of countless societies for thousands of years. And it really can be quite questionable at times. If you tried explaining the value of a dollar to someone who had never seen paper money before, you would sounds insane.

Take a $100 bill. This is a lot of money for most people. But the bill’s actual worth is no more than a piece of toilet paper. You can’t write on it, you can’t wrap things with it. Therefore its functional value seems to be limited to toilet paper. And yet, it’s still worth $100! But even then, it’s only worth what someone else will give you for it. It starts to get even fuzzier when you look at it on a worldwide scale. The fact that the whole world runs on little pieces of toilet paper which supposedly represent a certain amount of shiny metal no one’s ever seen before is pretty unsettling, at least to me. When it comes down to it, currencies are ultimately based on trust. But if things were ever to get so bad that the dollar wasn’t accepted anymore, well than all of my saved up pieces paper would be completely worthless, with the exception of wiping my ass of course.

Many people consider ‘digital currencies’ to be even more frightening. The fact that the number on your bank statement decides how much you’re worth can be pretty scary. But I think that’s because we still can’t break the habit of wanting a tangible currency that still holds some sort of value. Once we can train ourselves to look at money as unreal and imaginary, we will see a big change in the way our economies can operate. If any new currency stands a chance to change the way we think, it’s Bitcoin.

But what is Bitcoin? Many of us have heard of it, but most of us really haven’t a clue as to what it is and how it works. At its core, Bitcoins are a digital currency that allow users to make transactions online. Unlike the tangible currencies of every country of the world, bitcoins are completely virtual. They exist only online and are not controlled by a central authority like the Federal Reserve. This means you can’t get them anywhere in the real world. All transactions take place in an online marketplace, where users are untraceable. A metaphor that I found helped me understand the concept was, “If hard currency is a record, then a bitcoin is like an MP3” (What Are Bitcoins? – ABC News)

Bitcoin seemed to come out of nowhere a few years ago and has evolved from a simple internet startup to a real economic option that is respected by some, but talked about by many. Bitcoin was created in 2009 by an unknown person or group of people using the alias Satoshi Nakamoto. “Bitcoin is the first implementation of a concept called “cryptocurrency”, which was first described in 1998 by Wei Dai on the cypherpunks mailing list, suggesting the idea of a new form of money that uses cryptography to control its creation and transactions, rather than a central authority.” (bitcoin.org)

As with anything that has the possibility to be potential life-changing, Bitcoin has its’ fair share of both loyal and trusting followers, and harsh critics. The ultimate goal here in my opinion is to get people to change the way the think about money. And Bitcoin brings some great new ideas that couldn’t be possible with a real world currency. But we do have to be careful about putting our faith into an online currency because there are some substantial risks that come along with it. In any case, the more we know, the better.

Bitcoin is a currency like no other and it solves many of the problems our current currencies suffer from. One of the biggest problems with our current dollars and other currencies used around the world is inflation. Over time all currencies lose purchasing power mainly because governments keep printing more money. This process is basically a small tax on our accumulated wealth. With Bitcoin we don’t have this problem because the system is designed to make Bitcoins to be finite. Only about 21 million Bitcoins will ever be released. The release of new Bitcoins is slowing down and it will stop completely within a few decades. Another problem regular currencies have to worry about is the risk of a collapse. They depend on governments which, as seen in the past, fail occasionally. Such events either cause hyperinflation or a complete collapse of a currency, which can wipe out savings of a lifetime in day. Bitcoin has adjusted for that because it is not regulated by any one government. It’s a virtual global currency.

One of the most controversial features of Bitcoin is that the transactions are untraceable meaning no organization can trace the source of your funds. This creates both benefits and risks for the company. “This is a clear benefit in many areas of the world because governments that are supposed to guard against fraud are actually defrauding people by taking their savings partially or fully.” (Bitcoin: Benefits and Risks – Ivan Raszl)

While many Bitcoins users like the idea of this true privacy, the untraceable coins act as a double edged sword. This feature of Bitcoin of also attracts crime. People can buy and sell drugs and other illegal items with significantly less risk of being tracked by authorities. Bitcoins in this regard are similar to regular cash which is used by criminals. This fact may bring unwanted attention from governments that will outlaw Bitcoin. Jeff Reeves, a columnist from Market Watch and clear opponent of Bitcoin, was quoted in regard to Bitcoin’s anonymity saying: “This is great when you’re trying to keep a deal under the radar from the police or the tax man … but if your account is hacked and your bitcoins are stolen, you have little recourse to catch the thieves.” (marketwatch.com) At the expense of seeming somewhat biased, Reeves does still make a good point.

Reeves goes on to mention a few other aspects where Bitcoin fails to meet his standards. One of his talking points involved Bitcoin priding itself over not having a central authority. “Proponents like to talk about how bitcoin has no central bank or authority behind it as a net positive, but that fact also means a lack of true value. A bitcoin, then, is simply worth whatever a random person is willing to pay.” I don’t really agree with what Reeves is claiming here. He’s trying to make a correlation between a ‘Federal Reserve’ type of authority, and a currency’s value. But just as I said earlier, a currency is only as valuable as the trust its users put into it, regardless of any central authority or regulation.

While still on the Jeff Reeves article, I feel like there was one strong point he made involving risks from an investing standpoint. “While bitcoin surged from about $13 in January 2013 to a peak of roughly $1,150 at the end of November 2013, prices were as low as $178 a few weeks ago. Such a wild range in roughly two years should show how speculative bitcoin is.” I may not agree with Reeves on the whole, buy I must admit that those numbers are quite shocking and they certainly don’t help Bitcoin’s cause. A Yahoo News article from April of 2013 address the company’s first true ‘crash’ during the week leading up to April 13^th. “Many saw it coming, but that didn’t stop the Bitcoin bubble from bursting: after rising to dizzying heights, the digital currency suffered its first true crash this week. The price of the virtual “geek” currency had soared through the stratosphere in recent weeks, trading for a high of $266 on Wednesday — only to come hurtling back to Earth in just three days. By Friday, a single Bitcoin was worth just $54, according to the Mt. Gox platform, which manages 80 percent of the Bitcoin transactions and had to briefly shut down trading Thursday.” (The Bubble Bursts on E-currency Bitcoin – Anne Renaut)

Unfortunately, fluctuation is actually the least of the company’s worries. Because bitcoins are untraceable, they’re also unrecoverable. If your credit card is stolen or somebody hacks into your bank account there is a good chance you will not lose any money as banks will fix your balance. Even cash can be potentially recovered if the police acts fast. But with Bitcoin if you lose it you lost it for good. There is no mechanism to recover stolen or lost Bitcoins. If somebody hacks into your wallet where you store your Bitcoins you lost them for good. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t solutions. The best way to store your Bitcoins is on disk that is disconnected from the internet.

After the long list of pros and cons it’s hard to say whether or not bitcoins are smart investment. I think it should vary from person to person. I think Ivan Raszl put it best by saying, “Inevitably the question arises whether one should get involved in this new phenomena. I don’t recommend putting large sums of money into it as the bubble will inevitably burst… but nobody knows when exactly. But I do think it’s a good idea to get familiar with the system and perhaps buy just a small amount for the experience or to support the growth of the Bitcoin eco-system.” And who knows, maybe with everyone buying little bits and pieces to support the company’s growth, we’ll start to see great progress.

I decided to do just what Raszl was saying and familiarize myself with the system. I wanted to see just how easy or difficult it was to buy and manage bitcoins online. So I went onto one of many Bitcoin trading websites, (I chose coinbase.com), and converted about half of one week’s paycheck into Bitcoins. Technically I don’t have a whole coin just yet because the conversion rate is around $240 USD per coin. I haven’t decided to make any purchases with my fractions of a coin as I’m more interested in just observing the growth or decline of my investment.

While I would greatly like to see Bitcoin succeed and progress as a company and a currency, the thing that matters most is that we change the way we see money. To think about what money will be in the future you have to shake off the chains of the past and your preconceived notions of what money is. Money is not just, or should I say, is more than a medium of exchange. It is also a medium of information. It tells us what the marketplace wants and the price it is willing to pay for a particular good or service. “The (often fatal) flaw in fiat currencies is that they manipulate and distort the information contained within the currency, thereby damaging the information flows involved in the exchange of goods and services. For instance, the practice of quantitative easing engaged in by major central banks has encouraged money to go into certain markets (such as stocks), distorting the information reflected in the price.” (Forbes Magazine) If nothing else, Bitcoin offers a provocative way to think of the future of money, which is exactly what we need.

Yellin, Tal, Dominic Aratari, and Jose Pagliary. “What Is Bitcoin?” CNNMoney. Cable News Network. Web. 4 May 2015. <http://money.cnn.com/infographic/technology/what-is-bitcoin/&gt;.

Goldman, Russell. “What Are Bitcoins? Virtual Currency Explained (Like You’re an Idiot).”ABC News. ABC News Network, 18 Nov. 2013. Web. 4 May 2015. <http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/bitcoins-virtual-currency-explained-idiot/story?id=20926230&gt;.

Raszl, Ivan. “Bitcoin: Benefits and Risks.” Blog of Ivan Raszl. Web. 4 May 2015. <http://raszl.com/blog/bitcoin-benefits-and-risks&gt;.Renaut, Anne. “The Bubble Bursts on

E-currency Bitcoin.” Yahoo News Singapore. Web. 4 May 2015. <https://sg.news.yahoo.com/bubble-bursts-e-currency-bitcoin-064913387–finance.html&gt;.

Reeves, Jeff. “Bitcoin Has No Place in Your – or Any – Portfolio.” MarketWatch. Web. 4 May 2015. <http://www.marketwatch.com/story/bitcoin-has-no-place-in-any-portfolio-2015-01-28&gt;.

“New Money.” The Economist. The Economist Newspaper, 17 Mar. 2014. Web. 4 May 2015. <http://www.economist.com/blogs/freeexchange/2014/03/bitcoin&gt;.

Mauldin, John. “Is Bitcoin the Future?” Forbes. Forbes Magazine. Web. 4 May 2015. <http://www.forbes.com/sites/johnmauldin/2014/12/01/is-bitcoin-the-future/&gt;

McCrum, Dan. “FT Alphaville.” FT Alphaville. Web. 4 May 2015. <http://ftalphaville.ft.com/&gt;.

“Money vs Currency.” Money vs Currency. Web. 4 May 2015. <http://www.uhuh.com/unreal/moncur.htm&gt;.

“Bitcoin – Open Source P2P Money.” Bitcoin – Open Source P2P Money. Web. 4 May 2015. <https://bitcoin.org/en/&gt;.

GOAL 1: I used a multi-stage, recursive, and social process for my writing and took into consideration feedback from my instructor, classmates, and other readers

I did this constantly through out the semester. When writing I didn’t just jump right into  the assignment, I had to perform multiple steps in order to get a final product. Even after I was done those steps I still wasn’t done. I was able to use feedback and apply it to my writing, not only from my professor but also from my fellow classmates. Through feedback I was able to learn more about the assignment and also more about my writing. Due to the feedback I was able to go back and fix my mistakes, add missed information or just improve my writing overall. In my Casual Rewrite I had a very weak first draft, but after some feedback I was able to rewrite and improve it.

GOAL 2: I read source materials closely and analyzed them critically to learn how and why texts create meaning.

When researching a topic I wasn’t able to just read it once quickly and start writing. I had to read it multiple times in order to understand the sources purpose. At times I find myself confused and the only way to clarify would be to go back and not only just read but analyze and take in the information being presented. There is sometimes an important concept that i don’t pick up on or realize the true meaning of. The more I re-read a source the more i understood and the better i was able to write. In Visual Rewrite I had to go back and analyze the video more closely in order to complete the assignment correctly.

GOAL 3: I wrote with a particular audience in mind, allowing my purpose to shape the language and methods I used not just to communicate information but to persuade readers. 

When writing I had to establish who my audience was. In order to write my paper I have to know who I am trying to persuade. After I determine who my audience is I then have to find what I am going to write. Reading multiple sources that relate to the topic can help shape your main purpose. With the information I get from the sources I decide whether I agree or not. AfterI have a position for my paper I need to persuade the audience to agree with my view. In my Critical Reading I had to see who my audience was and present my ideas in a certain way in order to explain and persuade them that Brannan Vines developed second hand PTSD.

GOAL 4: I demonstrated my information literacy by synthesizing my own experience with new insights and information from a range of outside sources to produce new material.

I demonstrated this in my research paper. I have never actually used heroin myself but I do know people who have used and are also currently addicted. In my paper I spoke about how addicts can’t get better if they are still using and that if they keep using they will just slowly die. The people I know that are currently using heroin are not healthy. After using for so long they lost a lot of weight, developed scars, became very pale. They don’t look like normal people, the drug affects the body greatly. These addicts also are a threat to the surrounding neighborhood. Most have been none to commit crimes to obtain this drug. Since i have some experience with witnessing the life of addicts it made it a little more easier for me to research and write about for my paper.

GOAL 5: My writing is ethical. Writing about meaningful topics, I have engaged responsibly with them and represented my ideas and the ideas of others honestly, fairly, and logically.

When writing I chose to write about topics that seemed relevant and that I found interesting. Choosing topics such as those made it easier for me to represent my ideas. Topics that didn’t interest me where hard for me to write about. When representing my ideas I didn’t alter the texts from my sources. I didn’t change, add or take out words, I didn’t try to manipulate them to my advantage. When using information from my sources i always cited and gave the author their credit. Without citing the reader will not be able to tell what is your own words and ideas and what is the source’s. In my Research Position  I had to present my ideas on Vancouver and Insite’s motives with the program in a way that is fair to others views or ideas.

GOAL 1: I used a multi-stage, recursive, and social process for my writing and took into consideration feedback from my instructor, classmates, and other readers.  In composition 2 with Professor Hodges I learned to affectively determine what writing style to apply to each assignment. Along with choosing a writing style I was also able to determine how to properly apply them to various writing situations such as the definition essay assignment. There was specific style that was used in each assessment. For the definition essay I had to apply fewer words with more meaning to creatively make my point across of what the Marshmallow Test really was without losing my audience. Now for the visual assignment I learned how to use my words in such a descriptive manner that the person wouldn’t even have to watch the video with sound to realize what the message was. By stating obvious signs and mannerisms that I saw watching the video I was able to effectively portray the message.  I also learned where to go and what to ask for proper feedback on a paper by simply asking for feedback on my assignments and also asking people that sit around me in class for their own interpretation. My ability to find sources online has also improved due to my Proposal +10. By going to library and looking for creditable sources through their selection I learned how to properly use a library to my advantage of going the best evidence to help support my theories.

GOAL 2: I read source materials closely and analyzed them critically to learn how and why texts create meaning.  I also learned through different assignments in class how to properly analyze a paper or text to interrupt the true meaning behind the material. I learned this through our Je Suis assignment where we looked at image of Charlie Brown. Here we learned the true meaning behind an image that the illustrator and publisher wished to bestow upon us. This helped me also become very descriptive and realize how to create meaning in my other texts and assignments. Now able to read texts and notice strategies that the publisher used effective I can get my message across more efficiently and can model my own writing for the future through assignments such as open strong. This was vital to me because my sentence structure needed to hold the audience’s attention in a more useful and effective manner.

GOAL 3: I wrote with a particular audience in mind, allowing my purpose to shape the language and methods I used not just to communicate information but to persuade readers.  By reading other classmates’ and publishers’ rhetorical situations I am now able to pick up on words and meanings without knowing them simply by using context clues which I began to use in my own writing of visual assignment. Here I used several strategies to effectively make my purpose meaningful and responsive towards my audience by interrupting the message to them without sound. I did this by using a format of revealing obvious signs that describe the meaning of the ad through specific grammar and mechanics. My assignments now have the ability to respond to varying audiences through format, support, use of citations, grammar, and mechanics.

GOAL 4: I demonstrated my information literacy by synthesizing my own experience with new insights and information from a range of outside sources to produce new material. With the help of both of my proposal +10 and Bibliography assignments, I am now able to better corroborate, expand, and develop my thoughts simply by the help of more vast supply of research. My sources allow me to evaluate how to properly trace, illustrate, and explain my ideas while writing by using different information and strategies in the most effective ways. Personal experiences, observations, interviews, film, and other sources of information now play a more key role for me in the assignments helping me distinguish what effective formation is opposed to unnecessary information. My in-text citations, works cited pages, and bibliographies now hold a bigger meaning such as in the research paper where the evidence is vital and to have the best evidence you need the most meaningful sources.

GOAL 5: My writing is ethical. Writing about meaningful topics, I have engaged responsibly with them and represented my ideas and the ideas of others honestly, fairly, and logically. I now have a better awareness of how the complexity of ideas associates with issues such as my research position paper. In my paper I began to realize to true complexity behind the whole Marshmallow Experiment and the true meaning behind the study. My assignments show a better understanding of my own viewpoint and how I justify my opinion. I can set up boundaries between my voice and the voice of others by using appropriate paraphrases, quotations, and citations accordingly and with high expiations of academic integrity. I learned the importance of academic integrity and the fact of taking someone else’s thoughts is just wrong and useless in proving my own opinion on an assignment. Learning where to find good creditable sources was also vital in respecting academic integrity that was shown to me by Professor Hodges at the begging of the year. I noticed that the library has several sources but you must dig deep to find the best ones.

For my research assignment I will be examining if multivitamins are useful or not. Studies show that a third of American adults take a multivitamin on a daily basis. Separate studies in 2009 and 2011 also indicate that multivitamins have no positive effects on an individual’s health. With that said, we can see how people can end up wasting hundreds maybe even thousands of dollars a year.

But what could bring about such an oversight? Wouldn’t the companies that produce these products know that they are not effective if they are in fact useless?

The reason researchers and nutritionists are finding these multivitamins useless is because they say we get all of the nutrients and vitamins we need from the foods we eat. Granted these days there are much unhealthier, less fortified foods available, the foods we cook and eat at the dinner table provide all the nutrients we need according to researchers. Therefore, they feel that any extra from a supplement would result in an excess amount.

Vitamins: What to Take, What to Skip

Background: It is becoming more and more common knowledge that we get all of the vitamins and minerals we need from the foods we regularly eat. However, this article expresses that we should be getting them from the right foods. Leafy greens, fruits, and fortified foods are always good. There are a lot of foods that gives the minerals we need  but a lot of foods have extra chemicals and preservatives that are a detriment.

How I used it: This article will shed light on the difference between fortified foods and foods that don’t have much nutritional value. These days food is produced cheaper and faster meaning we eat a whole bunch of refined grains and processed foods. This document they say we get all we need from foods but which ones?

Experts: Don’t Waste Your Money on Multivitamins

Background: This article focuses on specific studies that indicate multivitamins do not boost a person’s well-being. However, vitamins and mineral supplements have been shown to reduce the risk of cancer. So this will also help me to examine the difference between these types supplements.

How I used it: To show that there is a difference between multivitamins, vitamins, and mineral supplements. Once I show the difference in these supplements I can explain why they work differently. Some are certainly more effective than others.

More evidence that routine multivitamin use should be avoided

Background: This article expresses how consumers of these supplements are being deceived. This leads to the population spending billions on useless products. Not only are they useless but that are actually known to cause damage.

How I used it: To show that the more we buy into these companies the larger they get. The prerogative of these companies is to make money so they are not concerned with the well-being of the population. Also to prove that if we have a nation that believes so strongly in something that is dangerous, what will the future of health look like.

Multivitamins – Benefits, Side Effects & The Best Multivitamin Brand

Background: This article provides general information on what a multivitamin is. This specific document however feels as though multivitamin use can be beneficial. This is the popular belief that they are good for mineral deficient diets. However recent studies show otherwise.

How I used it: To begin with knowledge on my topic. I will explain general functions of a multivitamin. What they are supposed to do and what they actually do. They certainly do not do what people would like to think.

Vitamins: The Good, the Bad, and the Useless

Background: This article focuses on what vitamins are in which foods. It consists of slides and each slide describes a different vitamin or mineral. This is helpful to allow us to switch up the foods we eat thus having a wider variety of nutrients.

How I used it: To prove that the good food choices provide all the nutrients we need. Expensive, futile pills are an unnecessary excess. This mean they can actually be detrimental to our health.

Vitamin Supplement: Healthy or Hoax?

Background: This article expresses the importance of good foods. However, the author feels as though only if there is a deficiency is a supplement of any kind needed.

How I used it: To show which vitamins if any are useful or needed.

Don’t Take your Vitamins

Background: As you can probably tell from the name, this article is against the use of vitamins. This can be any kind of supplement as well as a multivitamin.

How I used it: To show how a growing number of experts and consumers alike are realizing the short comings of multivitamins.

Multivitamins

Background: This article expresses that multivitamins are perfectly fine. This is a company that produces multivitamins so they will bring a different perspective.

How I used it: This piece will show that there are parties that believe multivitamins are useful. Or perhaps this is false information intentionally published.

Drugs.com/multivitamin

Background: It provides a definition and general facts about a multivitamin. This definition is biased toward neither side.

How I used it: To give general education to the reader on the topic of multivitamins. It would be  hard to understand the argument if it is unclear what a multivitamin is for.

Vitacost; Vitamins & Supplement Reviews

Background: This is a website that compares the best vitamins and their prices. The reviews come from consumers who have obviously used them and have positive or negative things to say about them in reviews.

How I used it: To give my paper a relatable edge to draw the readers in. This will make the information more concrete and reliable.

Course Goals: Composition 2

GOAL 1: I used a multi-stage, recursive, and social process for my writing and took into consideration feedback from my instructor, classmates, and other readers

I did this by using current events and forming an opinion them. Though difficult at first for me to understand, I learned how to incorporate feedback into my work more efficiently. This is important because when it is said that writing is a social process as well, that can also include peer reviews as well as teacher corrections. Taking constructive criticism on my work and being able to fix it based on that is what helped me reach my goal. Those are basically the stages that I used when fixing or revising a paper.  It is important to get outside opinions and help because people will view your work differently than yourself. Other readers can catch anything from punctuation errors to structural errors. My improvement in this area can be seen in my Visual Rewrite “The Crimes Against Our People!”.

GOAL 2: I read source materials closely and analyzed them critically to learn how and why texts create meaning.

Carefully reading and analyzing your sources is important because you want to make sure you have accurate and relevant information in your work. You also want to make sure that the information you use supports the position you take in the paper. A person’s text can create meaning in many different ways. The words you use can mean different things to people as well as the tone you use when writing. I met this goal by taking a little bit more time than usual to read through my sources. In my “Bibliography Assignment”, I had to use sources carefully to understand what i was using the for. Once I thoroughly understood them, I was able to relay the information in my own words, in my own work.

 GOAL 3: I wrote with a particular audience in mind, allowing my purpose to shape the language and methods I used not just to communicate information but to persuade readers. 

I reached this goal by remembering who was supposed to be reading my work. Having work on the blog means that anyone can see it but for the most part I wrote for the professor. I had to keep in mind what kind of information would sway my professor’s opinion to my point of view. This also kind of goes back to number two. By understanding what is in your source material, you can better relate to your audience. It will be easier to k now would should be left out of the work and what should be included. Now this doesn’t mean leave out facts or fabricate anything but there is certain information that may not be needed. I worked on this a lot in my causal rewrite assignment, “Discrepancy of Our Health”.

GOAL 4: I demonstrated my information literacy by synthesizing my own experience with new insights and information from a range of outside sources to produce new material.

As an example, I will us my final paper. I chose to write about multivitamins. The debate is whether or not they are useful. Multivitamins is in the category of health. Health and fitness is a topic that I have always been interested in and wanted to learn more about. However, there is a lot I already know and I incorporated that knowledge in a many of my works. Not just for the topic of multivitamins but for works like the moving image. I had a personal experience with racial profiling so it was a topic I could easily talk about with knowledge. So with what I already know along with the information from the sources, I was able to put my own feel onto the assignment. This is evident in my “Visual Rewrite” assignment because I experienced the problem personally.

GOAL 5: My writing is ethical. Writing about meaningful topics, I have engaged responsibly with them and represented my ideas and the ideas of others honestly, fairly, and logically.

I reached the goal of writing ethically by choosing topics I felt were relevant. Writing about something you don’t understand or are not interested in is quite difficult in my opinion. I represented the ideas of other people honestly by not changing words or the meanings of those words. Others ideas mostly refers to sources that I have found and used to influence my own work. When I needed to cite, I cited correctly. These quotes come from articles that gave me more insight and information on the topic of multivitamins. Even though I got information from these sources, I also voiced my ideas and opinions within my work. This is important for the reader to understand what side you support if any. The work I found most meaningful is my research paper, “Multivitamins – Useful or Harmful?”.

GOAL 1: I used a multi-stage, recursive, and social process for my writing and took into consideration feedback from my instructor, classmates, and other readers.

I haven’t written a paper in over 20 years and was really intimidated to take this class. I was unable to attend the first class due to starting a new job.   I checked my Rowan email account and read an email on a Saturday morning from Professor Hodges that said I missed a very important class and to contact him immediately. That didn’t make me feel warm and fuzzy.   I called him Saturday morning he was very responsive and helped me get started. He helped me log onto the “blog” and explained the first assignment. First of all, I never blogged and I couldn’t believe we weren’t writing papers. We had to write a personal, evaluative, analytical, narrative, argumentative, persuasive, categorical, or reflective response to the graphic that Professor Hodges used for the background of the course blog. There was a picture of Charlie Brown and he looked really sad or disappointed. I was perplexed with the assignment and knowing what I know now, I’m sure that is exactly how Professor Hodges wanted us to feel. I only watch the news for traffic and weather due to the negativity. I’ve been reading books such as, “The Secret” and “The Power,” by Rhonda Byrne, all feel good positive books. The Comp II class was based on seeing all topics as an argument. I found Professor Hodges looking at everything in a negative way in the beginning of the class. He saw the glass half empty and I saw the glass half full, just my opinion. I completed the assignment and the feedback was harsh. I didn’t have any confidence in my writing skills when I started the class and after my first feedback session I was terrified and thought should I just take this class another time. I realized that this class was just going to be very hard and I had to stick it out and prove that I could possibly succeed.

I liked the fact that you were given the opportunity to get feedback and time to revise your work during the semester. Professor Hodges said, “Your first draft is always garbage and you will want to rip it up in many pieces,” as he did in class and threw the paper all over the place.  I’m a visual learner and that will stay with me forever.  Professor Hodges would say at the end of every class if you want feedback, please ask.  I didn’t ask for feedback in the beginning for I was afraid of what he would say.  I wish I would have engaged more with Professor Hodges in the beginning of the semester I think I would have learned a lot more. I watched one of his students, blog name,  “skyblue.” She missed a few assignments in the beginning of the semester and I watched him take her under his wing and really helped her grow. She shared her experience with me in class and I felt good that  Professor Hodges was not only reaching me as a student, but I could see him reaching others. I know he is looking for negative comments and argumentative thoughts, not going to happen for I really enjoyed his style of teaching. In the beginning I thought he was crazy, but now I think all teachers should engage with their students such a Professor Hodges style.

GOAL 2: I read source materials closely and analyzed them critically to learn how and why texts create meaning.

My favorite assignment was the Visual Rhetoric paper. I watched the video I chose over and over again without sound to really focused in on what was going on. Every time I watched the video I saw something else. I found myself really engaged and was able to articulate the actions of the actors in the video. It was a good way to tap into how you can absorb information and describe each detail. If I had to read an article and write down what I read,  I would have spent a lot more time doing that assignment due to not being able to retain information the first time I read something.  Professor Hodges is aware of all learning styles and touches most of them in his class.  He knows his audience and if his students take a shift his lectures will too.

I had some grammatical issues that Professor Hodges addressed and he actually had a few lectures on mechanical writing, gave examples  of what not to do and allowed us to practice in class. I enjoyed those assignments; however, I need complete silence when I’m reading in order to comprehend. Some of the classes there was music being played and I couldn’t concentrate. Some students are gifted and can be in a loud room and be able to perform, not the case for me.

GOAL 3: I wrote with a particular audience in mind, allowing my purpose to shape the language and methods I used not just to communicate information but to persuade readers.

My audience was my classmates  and Professor Hodges. I enjoyed being in class with students that were more than half my age.  I was able to see how creative and free their minds were and watched Professor Hodges face light up when one of his students really got what he was saying. He would share a post and tell the student how fantastic they were when given feedback. I did feel as if my life lessons got in the way of some of my assignments. I would think too much and add my own experiences instead of sticking to the topic. I thought my first Rebuttal Argument was good Rebuttal Argument until Professor Hodges gave me some feedback and burst my bubble. I put a lot of time into that piece and was disappointed that I failed. I was trying to argue that a quick response from an eyewitness was better than giving an eyewitness time to deliberate. My examples at the time seemed to be on point, but after I received feedback I realized how they really didn’t make sense. I reached out to Professor Hodges and asked him if everyone had a hard time and what I was going through normal, he said, “Yes, that’s normal, juggler, unless you’re accustomed to writing complex arguments for a very particular reader who considers it his job to challenge you always to do better. I’ve seen nothing but effort and growth from you so far. Take heart. This is how the work goes.” That was my turning point in the class and I realized I was there to learn and that my work was supposed to be criticized and not to fear the feedback.

GOAL 4: I demonstrated my information literacy by synthesizing my own experience with new insights and information from a range of outside sources to produce new material. Insert here a 125-word explanation of how you met the goal. For a fuller description of the Goal, read the description of Core Value 4 above.

After getting some coaching I was able to really understand what I was going to write about. I was told that my working hypothesis would change a few times and that was so true. I set out to write about happiness and Professor Hodges suggested I change my topic due to happiness being such a tough topic to argue. He suggested the memory, so off I went and started researching the memory and decided to write about childhood memories. Do our memories define us or do we define our memories? The White Paper assignment was not used in or Portfolio however, that assignment allowed me to read sources and synthesize with my own experiences. I read about memory, how the brain works in correlation with memory recollection, how childhood memories are rewritten. Professor Hodges suggested that we talk to our friends and family about our topics and see if we could get them to argue or disagree with our ideas and then we would be on to something. I had to opportunity to write about some of my childhood memories and then asked my parents if that was what really happened.  I drove my friends and family crazy with my questions and now find myself analyzing stories people tell me and every time they tell me the story again something has changed. I think the older we get the more we elaborate some of our memories. The memory is a complicated topic to write about and can take you in several directions.

GOAL 5: My writing is ethical. Writing about meaningful topics, I have engaged responsibly with them and represented my ideas and the ideas of others honestly, fairly, and logically. Insert here a 125-word explanation of how you met the goal. For a fuller description of the Goal, read the description of Core Value 5 above.

I represented my ideas and others honestly. I really struggled with a lot of the assignments and had to put a lot of work into a few hundred word essay.   Struggled in a way of re-creating what I just read into my own words and having a good outcome such as the original.  I found myself reading the material, dumping my version on paper, re-reading the sources and updating the information constantly. I’m aware that I’m not a good writer and feel as if I improved since day one.  I can honestly say all my first drafts are horrible and embarrassing just like Professor Hodges said. As I was putting my portfolio together I found myself revising. I did use a lot of the material from my sources to develop my argument. I need to practice creating my own thoughts and understanding the material and adding value to the academic world.  I have been utilizing all lessons in my daily world and I am convinced that Comp II has made me a more conscious  writer and reader since day one.

1. What is BitCoin?

Background: CNN’s attempt to understand and explain the concepts of Bitcoin displayed in a very user-friendly article. The post includes basic instructions on how and where to safely buy Bitcoins. It also gives insight as to the different reasons people would buy the coins.

How I Used It: I used this article first to try and better understand Bitcoin myself, and then to be able to easily explain it in a way that makes sense to my audience.

2. What Are Bitcoins? Virtual Currency Explained

Background: This piece from ABC News explains Bitcoins simply for those who are having a hard time imagining them. There is an example in the article comparing hard currency to records and Bitcoins to MP3s. Unlike the last source, this one starts to go into topics a bit more complicated. Such as the mining process and the relatively controlled inflation rate.

How I Used It: The more specific talking points and explanations were helpful for when I started to go a little deeper into the currency’s strong points and weaknesses. I really like the metaphor of records and MP3s because it makes it easier for people to relate to such a difficult and foreign concept.

3. Bitcoins: Benefits and Risks

Background: Just as the title suggests, this article assesses and explains Bitcoin’s strengths and weaknesses. Among the benefits are things like low inflation and collapse risks, the easy accessibility, and the fact that the coins are untraceable. Although that last one could also fit into the risks category which includes thing like the increased possibility of theft, the instability of Bitcoin, and the fact that many companies don’t accept the currency because it’s so new.

How I Used It: I think it’s a good idea to familiarize myself and the readers with the system. I wanted to make it known that while Bitcoin still has some big flaws, it still brings some great advancements to the table. Not to mention it really starts to change the way we look at currencies.

4. The Bubble Bursts On E-Currency BitCoin

Background: This post from Yahoo News is a bit dated – (posted in April of 2013) – but it focuses on the first true crash of the digital currency. The coins had been trading for a high of $266 a few days before the crash. But at the time this article was posted, they were worth a mere $54. The website that manages nearly 80 percent of Bitcoin transactions was shut down for a few days.

How I Used It: I included some information from this article into my research paper because I thought it was important to show how Bitcoin was still susceptible to a crash. While the idea looks great on paper, we still need to remember that the currency is quite unpredictable.

5. BitCoin Has No Place In Any Portfolio

Background: The information in the article is somewhat more opinion based as it’s coming from someone who is strongly against Bitcoin. The author, Jeff Reeves, suggests that Bitcoin shouldn’t even be on our radar, and that it has no place in our portfolios. He goes on to explain the currency’s shortcomings like how Bitcoin has no true value and how anonymity is a double-edged sword.

How I Used It: Up until now, I haven’t shown Bitcoin from the perspective of someone who is completely against it. One of the main points in my argument is how varying people’s opinions of the coin are. And I think this source helped me showed that Bitcoin clearly isn’t for everyone.

6. Bitcoin – New Money

Background: This article is the same as most of the others in the sense that it acknowledges the pros and cons of Bitcoin. But it’s unique because it dives into the aspect of the money supply. The creators of Bitcoin made sure that only 21 million coins will ever be in circulation in an attempt to limit inflation.

How I Used It: This is just one of the many features of Bitcoin the make it superior to the US dollar as well as other nation’s currencies. Inflation has been something that we have all had to deal with over the years. Perhaps that will end with Bitcoin.

7. Is Bitcoin the Future?

Background: This article comes from Forbes Magazine and just as most of the others, questions whether or not Bitcoin has what it takes to be a legitimate currency. It also brought one of the better quotes I’ve seen from my research: “Growth demands a temporary surrender of security.”

How I Used It: This particular piece was useful because it provided insightful predictions as to how Bitcoin can progress in the coming years. It reminds us that when we look back at Bitcoin. We’ll marvel at how much of an influence it had.

8. The Dollar Is Still Our Currency

Background: I decided to dedicate a few sources to economics as a whole instead of focusing solely on Bitcoin. One of the big topics in this article is the idea of credit. Borrowing money from others may seem like a quick solution to a personal debt, but it turns out paying back those debts can be harder than expected.

How I Used It: By talking about the economic problems we face today and then giving examples as to how Bitcoin addresses these problems. I tried to take all the issues in the article and see if any of them could be solved by using Bitcoins instead.

9. Money VS. Currency

Background: This webpage was one of the most thought-provoking out of all the sources I used. While it had nothing to do with Bitcoin directly, I found it very useful because it helped me look at money and currencies in different ways.

How I Used It: I started of my research paper by talking more about money and the way we think about it than bitcoins. And because I addressed these things first, I was able to make what I thought was a pretty smooth transition into Bitcoins and how they could be revolutionary.

10. Bitcoin Homepage

Background: This is simply Bitcoin’s website. From here you can pretty much find everything you need to know. There are links about the history and community of Bitcoin. And even links to get you started with an account and an online wallet.

How I Used It: I wouldn’t say I used very much of the text information from the website. I mainly used it as a source of some good hands on research. I wanted to actually see for myself how easy it was to purchase and manage bitcoins. I made an account and even bought some of the ‘stock’. Though I have yet to make any purchases with them yet.

Bibliography

1. “reCAPTCHA”

Background: While it isn’t exactly an article and more of a product brochure, I thought it’d be appropriate to start with my prime example’s homepage. This page discusses the details and full extent of applications of reCAPTCHA.

How I used it: I used this to obtain a general understanding of reCAPTCHA’s applications with Google.

2. “Massive-Scale Online Collaboration”

Background: One of the four creators of CAPTCHA, reCAPTCHA, and Duolingo gives a seminar on TED Talks about his experience with massive collaboration. The article is a transcription of his talk.

How I used it: I used the article to add two or three paragraphs in the center of my essay to further solidify the relevance of massive collaboration. Without reCAPTCHA as a reference, the idea might have seemed mundane or arbitrary to the reader.

3. “Internet Users”

Background: A page solely dedicated to displaying the amount current and past users of the internet.

How I used it: This source was crucial to my paper in the aspect of providing solid ground of my basis that the internet is home to potentially limitless workers. Upon anyone visiting the site he could observe the number has been, is, and probably always will be rapidly rising.

4. “Seven Wonder of the Ancient World: Khufu’s Great Pyramid”

Background: A page dedicated to the history of the Pyramid of Giza, including facts about things from its construction to its surroundings and prominent features.

How I used it: Somewhere between picking my topic and writing my research position, the pyramid changed from a supplemental topic to the center of my paper, which wasn’t entirely a bad thing. This was the main source of my information about the pyramid in question.

5. “How online gamers are solving science’s biggest problems”

Background: As off-topic as it sounds, this is an article useful to my cause. The linked page gives way to a few “sub-articles” or pages where the reader can participate in any mentioned projects. The projects described in this article all use the guise of gaming to “coax” users and/or gamers into solving “real world” problems.

How I used it: Although the article never explicitly praises “massive online collaboration”, what it describes is the same exact concept which I used to further press the importance of using the resources of millions of people and the single-most important tool, the internet, to complete monumental projects for the better of humanity and the rest of the world.

6.  “Aliens built the pyramids”

Background: Chris Skinner provides some irrefutable evidence that Aliens assisted in the construction of ancient Egyptian pyramids.

How I used it: I used Skinner’s argument to perform a counter-argument against my main evidence, namely the pyramids.

7. “Google Finally Puts Captchas to Good Use”

Background: A source to further solidify a previous source (see “reCAPTCHA”) with actual writing. This article discusses Google’s use of Street View images in the reCAPTCHA programs.

How I used it: The previously stated source is only the introduction of Google’s plans for reCAPTCHA. This article was more credible as a citation and helped me further back Google’s intended application for the human-verifying software.

8. “What Makes Pi So Special?”

Background: An article describing where pi is found in real-life and how it is a naturally occurring number in nature.

How I used it: One of Skinner’s points was that you could reach pi (up to the 15th digit) some way by taking measurements of the pyramid and putting them into some arbitrary formula. This article served as proof that pi is a naturally occurring number and that it wasn’t as he claims to be calculated by the builders.

9. “Eisenhower’s Sputnik Moment: The Race for Space and World Prestige”

Background: A book about Eisenhower’s reaction to the launching of Sputnik

How I used it: This proved to be a good source in the name of conveying the true reaction of people after Sputnik for those who weren’t around to experience it firsthand.

10. “The History of Astrology — Another View”

Background: A lengthy article on exactly what the title says: the history of astrology. It brings into view accounts of the Egyptians, Mesopotamians, Babylonians, and even a brief amount of Hindus.

How I used it: Although not much from this article pertains to any kind of collaboration, I was able to cite the article and use excerpts to further disprove Skinner’s argument against pyramids.

1. Ringling Bros. – Elephant Child Abusers — Breaking a Baby Elephant

Background: This video is broken down into the different steps it takes to captivate an elephant and turn it into a domestic animal for the pure benefit of the entertainment business. The first step includes acquiring a baby elephant, which is done by importing asian elephants by binding their legs together. Now that the Endangered Species Act has been passed, Ringling Bros has its own farm to breed elephants in Florida. The second step is to take the babies from the mothers immediately after birth. They “break” elephants because they are wild and need to be tamed for the circus. The third step is to tie up all four legs of the baby elephant and keep it isolated for 23 hours a day. Step four is teaching the elephant circus tricks using ropes, bull hooks, and electronic prods.

How I Plan On Using It: This was an important aspect of my paper. I wrote about how the elephants are taken from their mothers’, bound, and broken. This article gives a dramatic affect to my paper and evokes reader’s emotions.

2. 6 Ways To Help Elephants

Background: This source provides six easy ways humans can protect and save elephants from extinction. They include avoiding circuses and zoos, being aware of where our coffee is from because some plantations destroy elephant’s habitat.

Use It: My paper ended up focusing solely on the abuse of elephants, although knowing ways to help is an important aspect to the survival of elephants

3. Get Elephants Out of Zoos

Background: Elephants’ living conditions in zoos are much more condensed than in the wild. Living standards for an elephant, such as 20 feet by 20 feet of space per animal, are pitiful. This eliminates the elephant’s nature to roam and walk freely as it does in the wild. It also exposes the forceful way zoos breed elephants, mostly through artificial insemination, knowing that most pregnancies will end in miscarriages or dead baby elephants. Overall, it exposes all the hideous truths about keeping an elephant at a zoo.

Use It: It was not used in my final paper because I had more than enough information to write solely on circuses. Although, this article shed light on the horrible living conditions for elephants, which I touched upon in my paper.

4. Cruelest Show on Earth

Background: The article revolves around a three-year-old elephant named Kenny Who became very sick during a show on tour. Sickly elephants require prompt medical care to insure their best performance. Ringling Bros ignored a reasonable suggestion by the veterinarian that Kenny skip one show, and forced Kenny to perform even though he was deathly sick and incredibly weak. That night Kenny died shackled in his suffocatingly small pen.

Use It: Although this was not a source used in my final paper it did show the carelessness of the elephant trainers and circus workers.

5. Ringling Bros. Eliminating Elephant Acts

Background: Ringling Bros. are phasing out elephants from their acts by 2018. The elephants that are in their shows will be sent to the Center for Elephant Conservation after they are eliminated from the acts.

Use It: I used this source in my final paper to show the elephants finally getting the treatment they deserve. I used the source to point out the slight remorse that Ringling Bros. has for the dwindling elephant population.

6. Poachers Target African Elephant for Ivory Tusks

Background: This article goes into depth about the rising crisis of ivory smuggling in the past few years. Several tons of ivory tusks are being smuggled and sold; poachers do this to make a profit because ivory is rare and pricey. It also discusses that the poachers are killing elephants at “massacre sites” and taking only their tusks, no meat from the elephant.

Use It: When researching and forming my paper I began to realize that I had more than enough information on elephant abuse within the circuses. Although I did not write about their tusks being stolen, it did open my eyes to the other tortures in the world that elephants are facing.

7. Elephant Abuse

Background: It talks about how in most zoos throughout the country elephants are chained up in a confined area and beaten. They explain the reason most zoos beat the elephants is to “keep the elephants in check” and to show that the elephant handler is dominant over the huge animal. This source offers a different perspective because it explains how the Oakland Zoo uses positive reinforcement like treats to train their elephants without abuse, and they also give the animals plenty of space to roam.

Use It: This goes along with my argument made in my paper that training elephants is more like torturing them. Although I did not directly source the cite in my paper it was a good source of reference, and gave me incite on elephant abuse outside the circus.

8. The Death of Stony the Elephant

Background: Stony was a circus elephant who was practicing standing on his two hind legs when his hamstring exploded. Stony was then brought to quarters where he was kept laying in his own waste unable to move a whole lot. He then died before they could send him off to an elephant breeding facility

Use It: I did not cite this source directly but in my paper I did mention the fact that elephants are so brutally beaten that they are dying without the proper care.

9. Ringling Bros. Eliminating Elephant Acts

Background: It is an end of an era for Ringling Bros. circus as they have decided to phase out all elephant acts from circuses by 2018. They elephants in the shows will then go to their preserve in Florida for a healthy long life.

Use It: I used this in my paper to show the Ringling Bros. finally making a change to the cruel lives of elephants. I used it to show the possible remorse that the circus feels for damaging the elephant population so immensely.

10. Positive Reinforcement in Dog Training

Background: This source discusses the different techniques used to train dogs. Including positive reinforcement which is giving a dog a treat after he or she has done something the trainer desires.

Use It: I used this article in my final paper to point out the different views of positive reinforcement. Positive reinforcement may work for training pets such as dogs, but elephants are gigantic naturally wild animals who need more than a treat to be trained to stand on their hind legs.

11. The Circus a Nightmare for Elephants

Background: The article discusses all the horrible techniques circus trainers use in order to “break” the baby elephants and prepare them for the show. Including them being ripped from their mothers so they know to answer to the trainers.

Use It: I used this to reveal the brutality of the circus to the readers. This training and these techniques are being hidden from the public and this article does a great job of showing what really happens behind the scenes.

12. Ringmaster Defends Elephant Care

Background: This article is the opposite of my other sources and claims that the animals are well cared for and not abused in any way.

Use It: I used this perspective as a form of rebuttal in my final paper, it shows the other side and then shows how the other side’s evidence is faulty.

13. Elephants Retire From Ringling Bros. Stage

Background: This source says that after almost a century of abuse elephants will finally be retired from the circus. It also says that they are beautiful animals and the public is starting to realize their mistreatment.

Use It: I used this source to show the effects of touring animals so brutally. The effect is the removal of elephants from all shows and the loss of money for the Ringling Bros corporation.

14. Former Ringling Bros. Employee Speaks Out Against Abuse

Background: A former Ringling Bros. employee Archele Hundley speaks out against the horrors that he witnessed while working for the circus. The animals were beaten with bullhooks until they were crying and dripping blood.

Use It: I used this source as a reaction to the rebuttal source. It has a huge impact on the paper because this person was an eyewitness to the torture in the circus. The quotes in the article draw serious attention to the reality of the circus, and the harm that these trainers do to the animals.

Annotated Bibliography

Proposal: A child acts without thinking just because he or she has no knowledge of whats right or wrong. Scientists state that from observing these meaningless actions that they can for tell something of actual meaning. In the Marshmallow test a child is given the choice to eat a trait now or to wait 15 mins for a another trait as well. Now this seems like a pointless action from the child but what actually occurs is something of relevance. Study shows that the child who waited actually had better grades,  better health, and was able to hold down their job later on in life. As for the children who ate the trait  were described as more unhealthy and were more addictive.

1.Secrets of self-control

Background: Here the study starts to show the effects of the results appon the children later on in life. As result of the children who lacked the self-control to wait for the second marshmallow seemed to find themselves in state where they had very little ability to control their behavior or impulses. Two new testes were applied to grown adults 4o years later which showed the same results.

How I Used It: This information would help support the meaning of how crucial self-control is with this experiment. If i can show results 40 years later resembling the same traits in the now grown adults as they had once when they were young it is clearly seen how this test works to show self-control

2.The lesson behind the test

Background: Here you can see the two main parts that are certainly measured in the child while he or she is being tested. The pure lesson here is to see how well the child can control themselves and if they can also control their impulse to eat the first treat. By being tested in these ways you can for tell how your child will act in certain ways such as in school for example where the child will have to have self-control to be able to sit down and do their homework, but also control of their impulses to get up and leave when brought appon distracted.

How I Used It: This information will be used  to help the audience grasp the whole meaning of the experiment. This will also help me to explain the meaning of self-control and controlling impulse as a lesson that can be of knowledge to help your child.

3.Delaying Gratification 

Background: Here you see a third effect that comes into play during the experiment. Delaying gratification plays a role in some children mind that keeps them for eating the first treat so they can have two. Without delaying gratification more children would have chosen to eat the marshmallow at first simply with only  self-control some kids who have given in but this last key helps some stay on path.

How I Used It: Delaying gratification is a third key to this test that helps support the reasoning behind the results and meaning of the Marshmallow test. This will help me explain why some kids even with little self-control were able to with hold from eating the first treat.

4.Controlling impulses and making strategies

Background: Also goes along with delaying gratification but with more steps. In the results of the marshmallow test a child makes strangers such as if they should wait this long then simply if not presented the second treat we can eat the first. ALong with a plan and delaying gratification it is easier to see more diverse results and the meaning behind them.

How I Used It: This can be used in my easy to help support the meaning of delaying  gratification and how it is used by children to attain their goals. It is seen in the results that if a strategy was made it didn’t always work but with delaying gratification helping the child it was a much higher percentage of children who waited for the second treat.

5.A new interpretation on the method 

Background: This information shows that the marshmallow test might actually have a different meaning behind it. Scientists have given a similar version of this test to children but with a goal of seeing if it was trust that was issue behind the results.

How I Used It: With this information I can look at the Marshmallow test from a different perspective and analyze the results. Even though this second test is bogus to me it shows another side of the test which can help define the true meaning behind it.

6.What the Marshmallow test really shows about self-control

Background: Here you gain more understanding that this experiment has to do with self-control but also with instant gratifies and high delayer. These are the categories the children were placed into after waiting or not waiting making the children who wait labeled high delayer and those who didn’t instant gratifies.

How I Used It: By having these two terms of high delayer and instant gratifies you see more in-depth the understanding of self-control. With children having to eat rather than wait and wait rather than eat.

7.Marshmallow Test for adults 

Background: Here you seem more reasoning behind the results of the Marshmallow test but in a different version more for adults. You see how this simple test is put into everyday life for an adult such as if he or she is at work and the phone buzzes or if he or she should eat a snack as they go home for dinner. It’s simple things like this that the marshmallow test resembles for kids.

How I Used It: This information helps me realize to the audience what the point is for the actual results. Such as if the child can’t resist the treat now what is going to happen 40 years from now when he or she is tempted by another person to be unfaithful to their spouse.

8.Marshmallow test seeks reliability

Background: Here you see another factor that seems to be tested in the Marshmallow experiment. This article sates that children who lived in a reliable community seems to wait longer than those who did not. This is a vital point that makes the audience look at the test different but even with this new spin the other factors of self-control and delaying gratification still play a role.

How I Used It: This information will help me look at the results of the experiment to see which is actually right. This article shows proof or reliability being measured but at the same time so are the traits from before. With this new information I can add to the meaning of the results of the Marshmallow test.

9.Is the Marshmallow test a fair study

Background: In this article you seem to look at the test from a child point of view and see that 15 mins for a four-year old is like an eternity. Some children even cracked under 20 seconds of the study under going. So this article seems to look at the fact of children being to young to even the difference or the true ask of waiting if there is something already in their face.

How I Used It: This article certainly help me to take a step back and look at threw a new perspective. With this understanding of such a young mind it does seem to make me think that the child does not really know what is going but at the same time shows that self-control beings once you are born.

10.Different Meaning to Marshmallow Test

Background: In this article you see other example such as trust, reliability, and the fact that if something is there now it might not be in a few mins. It shows tests done on kids who were in more unreliable community and places were things weren’t always given to them opposed to kids who were in better communities. Of course you see that certain kids eat the trait while others waited but different things were tested here.

How I Used It: This information helps me further gather more meaning to the results gathered by the marshmallow test and that maybe self-control and delayed gratification isn’t only tested. I can show meaning behind the fact that more things were certainly tested then what showed in the results.