Articles and Essays – Flashcards

Author: LZ Granderson Source:CNN Summary:In the article "America's problem: We are too dumb", LZ Granderson argues that the reason our government is so dysfunctional is because our country has lowered its standards. Granderson backs up his argument using facts and data. He uses appeals such as logos. Based on the information provided by the OECD,"...the literacy, math and computer skills of 5,000 adults from 16 to 65 and compared those numbers with that of 21 other countries." Granderson also said that the U.S. adults ranked 16th in literacy proficiency. He argues that most Americans are not educated enough. We do not place the lowest in education but we are far from the top.

Author: Christina Hoff Sommers Source: Time Summary:Christina Hoff Somers addresses an issue that has definitely become a problem in our schools. Somers argument is that these days' boys are being penalized for imaginative play. This argument is valid because according to the article, many schools boys are being punished for playing games that include superheroes, cops and robbers, and the typical things boys imagine about. This could be a problem because at an early age most boys can't be still. They're always imagining something's, and this could be an important factor of their growth and development. Being punished/suspended for being overly imaginative is wrong. Hoff Somers talks about how girls do a lot better academically then boys. The fact that girls are doing a better job in school is great, but the fact that boys are not doing as good academically can make a big negative impact on the socie

Author: Sarah Adams Source:NPR Summary:In the article "Be cool to the pizza Dude", Sarah Adams talks about the importance of respect, equality, and the position we must have for people. Adams makes her statement by showing an example of a pizza delivery dude. She brings this example to show that all people are important and should be treated equally, no matter what social status a person has. Adams tone is very friendly and simple. Adams wrote the article in a simple way so that everyone can understand why it's important to treat all people equally, no matter what status they are. Adams includes metaphors in this article such as the "pizza delivery dude" to address social justice. By using the metaphor of the pizza delivery dude, she is able to get the message across that we as human beings are all in different places in life. Some are on top of the social ladder and are very successful, where some are on the bottom of the social ladder and are working hard trying to get by in everyday life. Both are very important. It's important to acknowledge all people and be understanding of the circumstances they face.

Author: Gene Weingarten Source: Washington Post Summary:In the article "Pearls before breakfast", Gene Weingarten talks about one of the world's famous violinist Joshua Bell. On January 12th at 7:51 am, Bell performed six classical pieces at the metro at the L'Enfant Plaza Station. Bell was disguised in different clothing and he performed in the middle of a rush hour morning, he wanted to see how many people would acknowledge a musician. In that period of time about 1,097 people passed by, most of them didn't notice him and were just passing by. Very few people stopped to listen; some listened for a bit and put money in the case. Barely anyone recognized Bell, he didn't stand out he looked like a street musician. No one passing by the metro knew that Bell played a violin that was worth $3.5 million dollars. Weingarten is very descriptive and he explains the scenario clearly. Weingarten's thesis is that people are too busy and to notice the extraordinary things in life. Weingarten supports his argument by including pathos into the article. Weingarten often gives examples of the children who wanted to hear the musician play but the parents just scooted them away. One example he gives was: ""There was a musician," Parker says, "and my son was intrigued. He wanted to pull over and listen, but I was rushed for time." Another time pathos was used was when Weingarten talks about Bells performance. Bell was playing his heart out and was playing with all his emotions, but sadly very few noticed.

Author: Shahid Mahmood Source: Huffington Post(Huff Post) Summary:In the article "Eating Children, satirically speaking" Shahid Mahmood argues that satire is used frequently in the twenty-first century. Sadly, satire though it's effective it's not understood by many people. In the last paragraph of the article, Mahmood argues that: "Satire consists of amplifying the ludicrous until it is revealed how absurd it all is". Then he talks about how reality and fiction can be so tangled at times that it then becomes almost impossible to separate reality from fiction. Mahmood is trying to say that satire is pretty much made up of comical, sarcastic, or exaggerated expressions to expose fault in something or someone. Through the essay Mahmood also argues that people who don't understand satire can easily misunderstand and take the author seriously

Author: Robert Lanham Source: http://www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/internet-age-writing-syllabus-and-course-overview Summary:In the article "INTERNET-AGE WRITING SYLLABUS AND COURSE OVERVIEW", Robert Lanham uses satire to mock teenagers and to show that social media is affecting their intelligence. Throughout the article Lanham is practically just saying how social media is creating issues for teens that they don't even realize about. Texting, tweeting, and other social media is affecting teens in a bad way because it's making teens become more illiterate and lazy. Lanham writes the article with a lot of sarcasm, but at the same time he writes in a comical way and that makes the article more enjoyable to read.

Author: Bruce Shneier Source: CNN Summary:In the article The Internet is a surveillance state, Bruce Shneier writes about how we are being constantly tracked by the government: "The Internet is a surveillance state. Whether we admit it to ourselves or not, and whether we like it or not, we're being tracked all the time" (Shneier). Shneier brings up examples of Google and of Facebook and how people's information can be easily accessed through social media. Even if people do not have Facebook, twitter, or other social media, people can still be easily tracked down. Shneier refers this to a "ubiquitous surveillance", where people are watched constantly. People are tracked even through cell phones, emails, and just everything that is online. It all ties to that the government is violating the people's rights.

Author: Katie Atkinson Source: Huff Post/ Huffington Post Summary: In the article, I Will Stop Letters Define Me, Katie Atkinson writes about her experiences as a high school student. This article was really interesting and it was something that any high school can relate to. Atkinson wrote about high school classes and how a lot of the times people tend to define others by their grades. It's true, sometimes even to an individual. Atkinson then mentions that her history teacher said that: "Remember everyone; you are much more than a test grade" (Atkinson). From then on Atkinson talked about how grades do not define a person. Atkinson claims that test scores and grades in general do not define a person.

Author: Nicholas Carr Source: The Atlantic Summary:In the article "Is Google Making Us Stupid?" Nicholas Carr writes about the internet and how the internet has a bad effect on people. Carr makes the article more personal; he introduced the article with his own personal experiences. Carr talked about how after he started using the internet, reading long articles and how research has become very difficult. He also included that the internet makes people more reliant on the internet, to the point in where people stop using their own knowledge and brain

Author: Carl Zimmer Source: Discover Summary: In this week's article, Carl Zimmer writes about "How Google is making us smarter." Zimmer disagrees with Carr who wrote an article how Google is making us stupid. Zimmer brings up Carrs argument and then gives evidence of why Zimmer disagrees with the people are against Google/ are anti- Google. For example, some people who believe that texting is bad and that texting causes people to become illiterate. Zimmer argues against that idea: "Texting doesn't lead to bad spelling...In Fact texting actually improves reading and writing" (Crystal). Zimmer later then writes about the time when Google was first made. The two philosophers Andy Clark and David Chalmers wanted to convince reader that: "The mind is not simply the product of a wall of bone" that "The mind is something more". Our minds not only take in information but they also make decisions and send out commands. Zimmer brings up many examples of how Google is actually good for people. Overall, Zimmer claims that there is nothing wrong with relying on the internet/ Google for information. The only thing people should be concerned about is that information online should be filtered.