This section was about how the main characters, Katniss and Peeta, into their journey to the first district. They had skeptics about their trainer because he was a heavy alcoholic, but he seemed to become sober after the two became more and more accepting of the idea that they were to fight to the death. I think that the reason he is so alcoholic is seen through how many times their poor district had to suffer the loss of two children, being the only winner from that district. After they get there, the story transitions into more along the lines of a freaky type of game show, where the 2 from each district had to go through interviews, dress up in their districts main exports and sell themselves to their audience for sponsors. I was confused on what sponsors were, but it means that they were able to choose what and when they could drop a certain item for them, whether it be food, or etc.
When I first picked up this book, I thought it would be more chaotic, more forceful, and much more adrenaline type action, but it was nothing of the sort. It was more along the line of psychological warfare, where the author portrays every action and saying to have another hidden message behind it. The author usually goes and explains what it may be, but only in the mindset of Katniss. There are still many details that she doesn't catch but may have many implications. For example, Katniss believes that Peeta is going to go and kill her from the beginning. The actions that he takes, which in this case would be waving to the audience in the attempt to get a sponsor leads Katniss to believe this. However, later in the book, Peeta declares his love for her, which completely flips the story.
Overall, most of the story is found between the lines, and hidden in the actions of others. It is a great read so far even though it wasn't what I thought it was, actually it seems more enjoyable than just action because it goes into detail about the motive, consequences, and rewards of actions.
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Violence in wake of Koran Incident fuels U.S. doubts about Afghan partners
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/violence-in-wake-of-koran-incident-fuels-us-doubts-about-afghan-partners/2012/02/26/gIQAgc3qcR_story.html
I picked this article this week because I was looking through the news section on google and when I was reading through this, it felt like it was only showing once side of the story. It was about how the recent violence of Afghan has created a lot of tension between the U.S., as well as NATO. two high-ranking NATO officers were killed by an Afghan security official, which destroyed the relations that were built up. The article describes existing tension and the overlap of insults causing this event. Protests began and threw a grenade inside a U.S. base, wounding seven american troops and the protests were very violent, claiming 25 Afghan lives. The Afghan President, Hamid Karzai, initially reacted in outrage, but became more peaceful to try and calm down the situation.
George Jaffe has been writing for 17 years, 12 of those writing about military news for the Wall Street Journal since 2000. However by reading this article, I feel that he does not go into the actual burning of the Koran, which is what caused the initial burning. It was linked to another article explaining it though. The religious ferver of the people is very difficult to describe. However, it is similar to how America does not permit the burning of the flag. There was never an explanation to why U.S. Officials went and burned the copies of the Koran for.
It firsts talks about some of the reactions of the event, describing little effect that it could have, and then it goes into how future events will turn out and just how much it will change because of the event that has passed in this one week by a few individuals. Just because of this events, the relations between international organizations and countries came toppling down due to this incident. He also describes just how difficult it will be to recreate the trust that had existed before.
I picked this article this week because I was looking through the news section on google and when I was reading through this, it felt like it was only showing once side of the story. It was about how the recent violence of Afghan has created a lot of tension between the U.S., as well as NATO. two high-ranking NATO officers were killed by an Afghan security official, which destroyed the relations that were built up. The article describes existing tension and the overlap of insults causing this event. Protests began and threw a grenade inside a U.S. base, wounding seven american troops and the protests were very violent, claiming 25 Afghan lives. The Afghan President, Hamid Karzai, initially reacted in outrage, but became more peaceful to try and calm down the situation.
George Jaffe has been writing for 17 years, 12 of those writing about military news for the Wall Street Journal since 2000. However by reading this article, I feel that he does not go into the actual burning of the Koran, which is what caused the initial burning. It was linked to another article explaining it though. The religious ferver of the people is very difficult to describe. However, it is similar to how America does not permit the burning of the flag. There was never an explanation to why U.S. Officials went and burned the copies of the Koran for.
It firsts talks about some of the reactions of the event, describing little effect that it could have, and then it goes into how future events will turn out and just how much it will change because of the event that has passed in this one week by a few individuals. Just because of this events, the relations between international organizations and countries came toppling down due to this incident. He also describes just how difficult it will be to recreate the trust that had existed before.
Sunday, February 19, 2012
The Hunger Games
The Hunger games was written by Suzanne Collins, author of many fiction books. She has another Series call Gregor the Overlander, which is a series I have read in middle school and fiercely enjoyed. Looking up her profile was amazing because it had an impact on the way I read the book. It raised the expectation levels that i had for this book much higher, and in all honesty I did finish the book in one day. The Hunger Games has two more books in its series which i will most likely read due to the cliffhanging ending at the end.
The first section is setting the story, explaining how the United States became what it is, and why the Hunger Games are held. It also brings into perspective who the characters are and why they are significant. The main character, Katniss, would usually encounter someone, and go off on a tangent in a new direction by describing what the character is, and how he or she is significant to the author. It shows that Katniss is working to put food on the table, and a friend helps her with this. There are 12 sections (13 before it got annihilated) and due to a conflict, the other Sections must serve the Capitol. The Hunger games was created to display the power of the Capitol. Katniss was actually not picked, but Primrose, her sibling, was chosen. The chances of this happening were slim to none, but Katniss, in panic, decided to volunteer to go in her place, because the games are for 12 - 18 years of age, and Primrose was 12. Because 2 are chosen, one boy and one girl, another was picked, and it just so happens to be the baker's son. Katniss feels in debt to him because he has given her a 2 loaves a bread when it seemed her family was going to starve to death.
It is told in a first person perspective of Katniss, and she describes many by going on tangents and describing past experiences. The perspective the author chose helps develop the story farther down because of what happens between Katniss and Peeta, the baker's son. It offers only her perspective and it keeps certain elements hidden until later. Also, it helps the readers sort of sympathize and understand Katniss by putting themselves into her shoes.
The first section is setting the story, explaining how the United States became what it is, and why the Hunger Games are held. It also brings into perspective who the characters are and why they are significant. The main character, Katniss, would usually encounter someone, and go off on a tangent in a new direction by describing what the character is, and how he or she is significant to the author. It shows that Katniss is working to put food on the table, and a friend helps her with this. There are 12 sections (13 before it got annihilated) and due to a conflict, the other Sections must serve the Capitol. The Hunger games was created to display the power of the Capitol. Katniss was actually not picked, but Primrose, her sibling, was chosen. The chances of this happening were slim to none, but Katniss, in panic, decided to volunteer to go in her place, because the games are for 12 - 18 years of age, and Primrose was 12. Because 2 are chosen, one boy and one girl, another was picked, and it just so happens to be the baker's son. Katniss feels in debt to him because he has given her a 2 loaves a bread when it seemed her family was going to starve to death.
It is told in a first person perspective of Katniss, and she describes many by going on tangents and describing past experiences. The perspective the author chose helps develop the story farther down because of what happens between Katniss and Peeta, the baker's son. It offers only her perspective and it keeps certain elements hidden until later. Also, it helps the readers sort of sympathize and understand Katniss by putting themselves into her shoes.
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Which is the Gay One?
http://blogs.trb.com/news/opinion/chanlowe/blog/2009/04/military_gays_gay.html
This is a political cartoon done by Chan Lowe, who has been the editorial cartoonist for the Sun Sentinel for over twenty six years. He has created many political cartoons. This political cartoon was drawn because of the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Act, which was a very controversial topic when it was created. There are three box like shapes that is covered with the american flag, and because it was drawn in the context of the military, I made the assumption that the boxes are used to symbolize coffins. Lowe makes the point that there is no distinction between any other soldier. All soldiers, regardless of whether they are gay or not, it should not make a difference whether one may or may not be in the military.
The cartoonist decided to explain with a short excerpt. He says that it does not matter whether or not they try to pass this because they try to expose and remove the gay soldiers anyway. He also puts the argument that Alexander the Great was also gay, and he was one of the best commanders in the world. Therefore there is nothing that changes the fact that a soldier is a soldier, and that gay and normal people does not differentiate if one is a good soldier.
The boxes are used to show coffins, and the cover is used to reference America, and the final context at the bottom shows that it is referring to the don't ask don't tell act. The combination together explains the purpose of the political cartoon. He made every single box the same in order to get the point, which is that there really is no distinction between boxes, across clearly. It is a bit outdated because the Don't Ask, Don't Tell, is from around 2009, not 2012. However, it is still a great example of visual rhetoric
This is a political cartoon done by Chan Lowe, who has been the editorial cartoonist for the Sun Sentinel for over twenty six years. He has created many political cartoons. This political cartoon was drawn because of the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Act, which was a very controversial topic when it was created. There are three box like shapes that is covered with the american flag, and because it was drawn in the context of the military, I made the assumption that the boxes are used to symbolize coffins. Lowe makes the point that there is no distinction between any other soldier. All soldiers, regardless of whether they are gay or not, it should not make a difference whether one may or may not be in the military.
The cartoonist decided to explain with a short excerpt. He says that it does not matter whether or not they try to pass this because they try to expose and remove the gay soldiers anyway. He also puts the argument that Alexander the Great was also gay, and he was one of the best commanders in the world. Therefore there is nothing that changes the fact that a soldier is a soldier, and that gay and normal people does not differentiate if one is a good soldier.
The boxes are used to show coffins, and the cover is used to reference America, and the final context at the bottom shows that it is referring to the don't ask don't tell act. The combination together explains the purpose of the political cartoon. He made every single box the same in order to get the point, which is that there really is no distinction between boxes, across clearly. It is a bit outdated because the Don't Ask, Don't Tell, is from around 2009, not 2012. However, it is still a great example of visual rhetoric
Sunday, February 5, 2012
The Hunger Games
Just bought the book from B&N, my parents didn't have time to buy it for me, sorry because it's late.
The book held an interest to me because so many people have been recommending it to me as a good read, but never felt motivated to read it. The setting is in an apocalyptic future of the United states, where one very advanced metropolis holds absolute power over the rest of the country. The hunger games describe the annual event where children aged in their teens are chosen by random where only 1 person may survive. Suzanne Collins was the author of the book.
the total amount of pages is 374, so I split it into 125 pages per section
The book held an interest to me because so many people have been recommending it to me as a good read, but never felt motivated to read it. The setting is in an apocalyptic future of the United states, where one very advanced metropolis holds absolute power over the rest of the country. The hunger games describe the annual event where children aged in their teens are chosen by random where only 1 person may survive. Suzanne Collins was the author of the book.
the total amount of pages is 374, so I split it into 125 pages per section
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Solar Flare!
This article was scientific article about a recent solar flare, which created quite a commotion due to the inconveniences we faced in communication and transportation. They mentioned the sheer size of the radiation waves that impacted Earth by describing it as a, "cosmic tsunami of energy, in the form of charged particles, radio static and X-rays, across the 93 million miles to Earth." The flare interrupted global positioning systems as well as airplane communications, and to avoid this, the airlines intentionally avoided locations where radiation levels were high as well as fling low to reduce the level of radiation. I found it interesting that the radiation levels were so high, but there isn't really much worry at the moment. I also found it interesting that this happens thousands of times, and that this news article was written due to the size of the flare.
This article was written by two authors, Robert Lee Hotz and Doug Cameron. I found it peculiar when i read the word Hotz, but they both have written many articles for the Wall Street journal. As for a rhetorical analysis on the article, I found the external sources to be most interesting. There were many links to videos and pictures of the flares which increased just how they looked and it really helped with the imagery and increased the interest level of the article as a whole. The authors use Quotes from scientists as well as examples of what the companies did to account for the discrepencies of the level of radiation, but I feel that if they had included just how, " the charged particles can cause computer glitches or temporary control malfunctions aboard some of the 860 or so satellites orbiting Earth", it would increase the level of pathos because it shows they understand what relevance it has to the current topic as well as increase audience's knowledge on the subject as well. Besides that, the most alarming thing in the article was by far the mention of radiation shelters, and how the flares were only going to get bigger when nearing the solar maximum, which wasn't really explained either.
This article was written by two authors, Robert Lee Hotz and Doug Cameron. I found it peculiar when i read the word Hotz, but they both have written many articles for the Wall Street journal. As for a rhetorical analysis on the article, I found the external sources to be most interesting. There were many links to videos and pictures of the flares which increased just how they looked and it really helped with the imagery and increased the interest level of the article as a whole. The authors use Quotes from scientists as well as examples of what the companies did to account for the discrepencies of the level of radiation, but I feel that if they had included just how, " the charged particles can cause computer glitches or temporary control malfunctions aboard some of the 860 or so satellites orbiting Earth", it would increase the level of pathos because it shows they understand what relevance it has to the current topic as well as increase audience's knowledge on the subject as well. Besides that, the most alarming thing in the article was by far the mention of radiation shelters, and how the flares were only going to get bigger when nearing the solar maximum, which wasn't really explained either.
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Joe Paterno died?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/2012/01/22/gIQAgZ3uJQ_story.html
This was found on the Washington post, where a student journalist's Twitter post suggested that Joe Paterno had succumbed to Lung Cancer on Saturday night. However, it seems that he died 14 hours after some major sources of media had already declared him dead. This describes the parroting nature of the media in present day, where information can be easily found but may not be accurate. Twitter, facebook, etc are sites where daily news are posted, and one of the easiest way to spread information. People reposted this post without checking to see if it was true, or valid for that matter. He was thought to be dead on saturday night, but died on sunday morning.
The story itself may be sad, but it does describe just how much power the internet held in terms of spreading information from one to another. It also describes just how dangerous a tool this could be if it was used wrongly, like in the case of Joe Paterno. This goes to show that it is crucial to check the background of all information from trustworthy sites, though in this case, many news sites had this issue. Information travels fast, in this case, a bit too fast. The moral is that don't trust the internet with a valid source.
The news was posted on Washington Post, and written by Paul Farhi who is a reporter for them. He has written many articles from 2011, and a few from 2012. The writer first describes the situation on what has happened, and follows with a background check as well as quotes from many people, such as the CBS Sport, who were the ones that posted in the Daily Beast, Managing Editor, Mark Swanson. They are witnesses of the event and had some type of correlation to it. He ends with the fact that someone resigned to bring out sympathy, for his wrong and the punishment he's given himself as well.
This was found on the Washington post, where a student journalist's Twitter post suggested that Joe Paterno had succumbed to Lung Cancer on Saturday night. However, it seems that he died 14 hours after some major sources of media had already declared him dead. This describes the parroting nature of the media in present day, where information can be easily found but may not be accurate. Twitter, facebook, etc are sites where daily news are posted, and one of the easiest way to spread information. People reposted this post without checking to see if it was true, or valid for that matter. He was thought to be dead on saturday night, but died on sunday morning.
The story itself may be sad, but it does describe just how much power the internet held in terms of spreading information from one to another. It also describes just how dangerous a tool this could be if it was used wrongly, like in the case of Joe Paterno. This goes to show that it is crucial to check the background of all information from trustworthy sites, though in this case, many news sites had this issue. Information travels fast, in this case, a bit too fast. The moral is that don't trust the internet with a valid source.
The news was posted on Washington Post, and written by Paul Farhi who is a reporter for them. He has written many articles from 2011, and a few from 2012. The writer first describes the situation on what has happened, and follows with a background check as well as quotes from many people, such as the CBS Sport, who were the ones that posted in the Daily Beast, Managing Editor, Mark Swanson. They are witnesses of the event and had some type of correlation to it. He ends with the fact that someone resigned to bring out sympathy, for his wrong and the punishment he's given himself as well.
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