Hook Research Final Draft: Gentically Modified Crops:The Future Of Food

Imagine biting into a nice big piece of corn on the cob. While it may taste good and look normal, there is much more to this piece of food than meets the eye. This particular corncob has been modified genetically to resist pesticides. Furthermore, the adverse effects of these modifications have not been examined for any long-term adverse health effects. There is also not enough concrete evidence that shows the corn being consumed will have no harm on the environment it is grown in. Genetically modified crops are becoming an increasingly popular way to grow food and are already being sold to consumers (Han and Harrison 1). Genetically modified crops are made by the modification of genes in the plant in order to give the plant new more desirable attributes. With increased popularity among farmers and corporations, the implications of genetically modifying food should be examined further and more tenaciously, especially if genetically modified crops become the preferred choice of product for farmers. Although genetically modified crops may have their benefits, they are still questionable because there are potential health risks, potential environmental risks, and ethical issues that must be addressed.

One of the most important aspects to consider concerning genetically modified crops is the possibility of negative health effects in humans that consume them. While studies have been conducted on the short term potential health risks of genetically modified crops, the possible long term effects of eating these types of foods have not yet been determined (Schmidt 6). It is necessary to do further research into the possibility of long term health effects before genetically modified food products become more widely consumed. In an article by Tom Horlick-Jones, John Walls, and Jenny Kitzinger, the health risks of genetically modified foods are compared to the way people viewed the health risks of smoking cigarettes before scientists found out that cigarette smoking was linked to the development of lung and heart disease, including cancer (13). It is never good to find out that something that is being consumed on a mass scale has adverse health effects after it has already been consumed extensively. What is more disturbing is that these products are already being sold and consumed without consumer knowledge (Han and Harrison 1).

Another health related problem is that genetically modified crops may actually mutate the nutritional structure of the crops themselves and could decrease or change the nutritional value to humans (Cook 133). Also, there is the risk that genes that cause human allergies in one plant may be inserted into another plant, unbeknownst to the consumer and this could end in a dangerous allergic reaction (McLean). Many people are affected by food allergies and in some cases these reactions can be fatal.

The potential health risks of genetically modified crops should be further examined before these products are made more available for mass consumption then they already are. An alternative to eating genetically modified crops includes eating traditionally grown crops that are not genetically modified like the crops that existed on the market before genetically modified crops were introduced. Another option includes eating organically grown crops to avoid the potential health risks of genetically modified crops. A seemingly better alternative for those who like the benefits of genetically modified crops, but do not necessarily trust crops that are genetically modified, is what is known as nuclear food. Nuclear food involves exposing plants to levels of radiation that cause natural mutations which can then be bred into plants without the need for any type of genetic modification (Williams 2). By using radiation to mutate plants, there is nothing changed within the plants genetics that could not occur naturally (Williams 3).

Not only is it unclear how genetically modified crops will affect the health of humans, environmental risks are also present. Dr. Harry Kuiper sums up the environmental concerns by stating that “There are a number of issues to consider, including development of resistance in insects against certain crop pesticides, transformation of crops into weeds, harmful effects on non-target organisms, gene flow, and altered uses of agrochemicals on transgenic crops” (1). Even Gregory Pence, who wrote a book supporting the use of genetically modified crops, agrees that the environmental effects are possibly the biggest concern and that the arguments about adverse environmental effects “carry the most weight” (189). A common practice is to create herbicide resistant crops through genetic modification. One issue of concern is the possibility of herbicide resistant modified genes in a plant crossing into a weed, making the weed resistant to the herbicide as well (McLean). Having a species of herbicide resistant weeds would obviously be a problem for farmers trying to grow these crops and would be an even bigger problem if these weeds were to spread to surrounding areas, choking out the natural plant life while resisting herbicides.

Another one of the practices used in genetically modifying food involves modifying crops with a bacteria gene making the plant more readily resistant to pests (National Research Council 145) This practice has led to leaf stripping in some of the crops (National Research council 146). Also, the effects of this type of modification on human health have not been closely examined (Wesseler 90). Another mutation related environmental risk factor includes the mutation of pests near the genetically modified crops, as well as indirect effects on insects and wildlife (Cerdeira et Al. 5). With the potential of mutation in non-target organisms, scientists need to be sure that mutations will be little to none, or at least not problematic as a result of growing genetically modified crops.

One of the other concerns brought up by the use of genetically modified crops is the effect that broad-spectrum herbicides that are used on plants that are modified to resist this specific type of herbicide may have on the environment. Broad-spectrum herbicides are single herbicides that can be used on genetically modified crops that are modified to resist them as opposed to the traditional method of using several types of herbicide on non-genetically modified crops (Cook 136). The problem with using these broad-spectrum herbicides is the possible effect that they would have on non-target organisms, such as birds and other plants that are sprayed or around the chemicals that are sprayed on the genetically modified crops themselves (Cook 146). Scientists need to take a closer look at how these herbicides may affect surrounding organisms in the long run to ensure that negative long term and short-term ecological effects do not take place. One good alternative to genetically modifying crops would be to put more money into developing safer more effective pesticides and herbicides. With more research funding put towards creating safer herbicides and pesticides, a solution could be found for reducing the environmental impact of herbicides and pesticides without the need for genetically modifying crops that resist these elements.

The new era of biotechnology has raised new and important debate over the ethics of man manipulating the genes of living organisms including plants used for crops. One of the issues is that these products are being sold without being labeled in the United States and other countries (“Genetically Modified Food and Organisms”). Consumers should at least be given a choice of what kind of food product they are buying by the proper labeling of products as genetically modified (Han and Harrison 4). This is already being done so that consumers can distinguish between organic and regularly grown crops.

The idea of man redesigning plant and animal DNA has been subject to debate since it first came about. Religious groups especially have had problems with the idea of scientists “playing God” with crops and food, as well as the moral implications of the scientist performing these modifications (PBS). While religious groups are making a moral argument based on their beliefs, they still raise an interesting point. Even groups outside of the religious viewpoint have had objections to tampering with the natural gene structure of crops (“Genetically Modified Food and Organisms”). When scientists begin modifying nature, important ethical questions need to be addressed before science goes too far and something negative is done that cannot be undone.

Another ethical problem is the way large companies who own the rights to genetically modified crops would treat farmers that operate on a much smaller scale (McLean) These businesses could potentially cut out these farmers by selling to larger agro-businesses that would generate higher sales for the companies in question. It is important to allow small-scale farmers to have access to these technologies if these technologies become the norm, and not to allow large companies to take a firm hold on the agricultural market. Competition is the backbone of a capitalist economy, and by limiting competition the consumer loses. Genetically modified foods certainly raise new ethical questions that should be addressed if genetically modified crops are going to become a staple in the agriculture market.

Food is a necessity for human life. Genetically modified food is really just beginning to become a realistic option as the dominant food source choice for farmers and consumers. Based on current trends, it is most likely a reality that genetically modified food will eventually become a more prevalent source of food and a more desirable crop for farmers. Researchers need to be sure that genetically modified crops will not have any long term health effects on people, especially if genetically modified crops step up from being a minority food source to a majority food sources. Research should also be continued to ensure that irreversible environmental effects wouldn’t become a problem. The ethical implications of growing genetically modified crops must also be closely examined and measures must be taken to ensure that food will remain available for all people in the world and not be negatively impacted through the science of genetic modification. Genetically modified foods must be examined closer before they take a place as a reasonable source of food.

Works Cited:
Cerdeira, A.L., et al. "Review of potential environmental impacts of transgenic glyphosate-resistant soybean in Brazil [electronic resource]." Journal of environmental science and health. Part B: Pesticides, food contaminants, and agricultural wastes 42, (June 2007): 539-549. Agricola. EBSCO. UAF Rasmuson and BioSciences Libraries, Fairbanks, AK. 26 Mar. 2009 .

Kuiper, Harry. "Biotechnology, the Environment, and Sustainability." Nutrition Reviews 61.6 (15 June 2003): s106. MasterFILE Premier. EBSCO. UAF Rasmuson and BioSciences Libraries, Fairbanks, AK. 26 Mar. 2009 .

Schmidt, Charles W. "Genetically Modified Foods Breeding Uncertainty." Environmental Health Perspectives 113.8 (Aug. 2005): A526-A533. Health Source - Consumer Edition. EBSCO. UAF Rasmuson and BioSciences Libraries, Fairbanks, AK. 26 Mar. 2009 .

Williams, Stephen. "Rather than GM, here comes nuclear food." New African (Jan. 2009): 20-22. MasterFILE Premier. EBSCO. Rasmuson and BioSciences Libraries, Fairbanks, AK. 30 Apr. 2009 .

Han, Jae-Hwan, and R. Wes Harrison.. "Factors Influencing Urban Consumers' Acceptance of Genetically Modified Foods [electronic resource]." Review of agricultural economics 29, (Dec. 2007): 700-719. Agricola. EBSCO. Rasmuson and BioSciences Libraries, Fairbanks, AK. 30 Apr. 2009 .

Horlick-Jones, Tom, John Walls, and Jenny Kitzinger. "Bricolage in action: learning about, making sense of, and discussing, issues about genetically modified crops and food." Health, Risk & Society 9.1 (Mar. 2007): 83-103. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Rasmuson and BioSciences Libraries. 30 Apr. 2009 .

"Genetically Modified Foods and Organisms." Human Genome Project Information. 25
Apr. 2009 gmfood.shtml>.

McLean, Margaret R. "The Future of Food: An Introduction to the Ethical Issues
in Genetically Modified Foods." Santa Clara University. Santa Clara
University. 24 Apr. 2009 focusareas/medical/conference/presentations/genetically-modified-foods.html>.

National Research Council. Envrironmental Effects of Transgenic Plants.
Washington, D.C.: National Acadamy , 2002.

Pence, Gregory E. Designer Food. Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield, 2002.

Wesseler, Justes ed. H.H. Environmental Costs and Benefits of Transgenic Crops.
Dordrecht: Springer, 2005.

Cook, Guy. Genetically Modified Language. New York: Routledge, 2005.

PBS. "Genetically Modified Foods." PBS.com. 25 Apr. 2009 wnet/religionandethics/week434/cover.html>.

Essay 3: Getting The Trash Out

The state of Alaska is well known for its majestic beauty. The city of Fairbanks is the largest city in Alaska's interior and is one of the best examples of Alaska's natural beauty. The summers are amazing and the winters although cold and dark have their own beauty. Springtime on the other hand is a mess of melting snow and mud. Another unfortunate side effect of spring in Fairbanks is that all of the litter that was once hidden by snow during the winter begins to appear as the snow melts. Springtime litter is a major problem in Fairbanks and takes away from the natural beauty of the city. Some cleanup efforts do exist, but litter is still strewn about the city after these clean up efforts take effect. Winter litter can be noticed weeks into summer. Another problem with clean up efforts done by the city is that they do not focus on individual neighborhoods in Fairbanks but mainly the main areas of the city and alongside the freeways. Although springtime cleaning efforts in Fairbanks are common, neighborhoods in the community should organize neighborhood cleaning groups after the snow melts because litter is unsightly, these groups would benefit the community as a whole, and it is an easy way to perform community service.

It is a fact that whenever the snow melts in Fairbanks the winter litter appears. No one wants to visit a city that is riddled with litter. Litter does nothing to increase the natural beauty of Fairbanks. The worst part about all of the litter is when it finally starts warming up enough to want to go outside, the amount of visible litter takes away from what should a beautiful and welcome experience after the long dark winter. For the most part people enjoy going outside and walking in their neighborhoods or around town when it begins to get warm outside. People also want to enjoy the beauty of springtime and the beginning of summer when Fairbanks warms up. By getting in contact with a few neighbors, the amount of litter in local neighborhoods could be reduced dramatically by the efforts of a few people in one afternoon. Because of their close proximity, it would be easy to create flyers about a cleanup effort for the neighborhood and post them around the area as well as slipping them into mailboxes and doorways. By picking a neutral time and meeting place, a lot could be accomplished by a few volunteers and one weekend afternoon. Through these cleanup efforts, the beauty of late spring and early summer as well as the overall aesthetic of Fairbanks would be greatly increased.

Fairbanks has a strong sense of community that can be seen year round. People who live here organize events that benefit the community as a whole. Many things can be done to benefit the community, and cleaning it up is one that is fairly simple to organize and easy to do. Organizing clean up groups not only benefit the individual neighborhoods that are being cleaned, but if the majority of neighborhoods in Fairbanks adopted this practice it would serve the community greatly as a whole. By beautifying the community and cleaning all the unsightly trash, the community benefits. The organization of neighborhood cleanup groups not only benefit the community as a whole but they would be a great way to clean up and benefit the local neighborhoods.

A lot of people talk about performing community service, but never participate for several reasons. Some say they simply don't have enough time. Others say that the opportunity never arises. By organizing or participating in a neighborhood clean effort is that it would take minimal take organization, planning, time , or even very much effort. It would also be an easy once a year way to commit some time to performing an act a community service. With a few actions and a little bit of organization, a neighborhood could be in tip top shape after one or two afternoons or days of cleaning. Another benefit is any little bit helps, whether it is just a few friends, or if the whole neighborhood pitches in, the community service would be beneficial. By organizing a neighborhood cleanup effort, people can perform the community service they always wanted to with very little effort. All it takes is a few people and a little initiative.

Litter is a problem all over the United States. From Alaska all the way down to Florida, neighborhood clean up efforts would be a simple way to benefit the community. While the problem of littering is very difficult to eradicate, the act of picking litter up and putting it out of sight is quite easy and depending on the volume, not incredibly time consuming.. Fairbanks' problem with litter is that it is covered by snow in the winter and the build up makes an unsightly mess during the spring and early months of summer. By organizing neighborhood cleanup efforts, this unsightly mess can be taken care of. Neighborhood clean up groups help to beautify the city. Neighborhood clean up efforts benefit the community as a whole. Neighborhood cleanup groups would also provide an easy way for people to perform community service. While it is as of now impossible to eliminate the problem of littering, neighborhood clean up groups would be a good way of getting rid of the litter.

Research Project Rough Draft 2:Futuristic Food

Picture biting into a nice big piece of corn on the cob. While it may taste good, there is much more to this piece of food then meets the eye. This particular corn cob has been modified genetically to resist pesticides. Furthermore, the adverse effects of these modifications have not been examined for any long term adverse effects. There is not enough concrete evidence that shows the corn being consumed will have no harm on the environment it is grown in either. Genetically modified crops are becoming an increasingly popular way to grow food and are already being sold to consumers. By modifying the DNA of certain crops, the crops are granted new attributes such as the ability to resist pesticides or to grow bigger and faster. With increased popularity among farmers and corporations, the implications of genetically modifying food should be examined further and more tenaciously, especially if genetically modified crops become the preferred choice of product for farmers. Although genetically modified crops have their upside, they are still questionable because there are potential health risks, potential environmental risks, and potential ethical risks.

When scientists change the DNA of a food product they are not only changing the plant's DNA, but they are also changing what is going into the consumers body. While studies have been done on the short term potential health risks of genetically modified crops, the possible long term effects of eating these types of foods has not been determined. “Consumers are eating these foods without any apparent health effects, although some stakeholders caution that greater postmarket surveilence is needed to confirm this” (Schmidt). The Food and Drug administration is required to do extensive testing to make sure that foods are safe for consumption but so far there is not substantial evidence that there is no possibility for adverse health effects resulting from the consumption of genetically modified crops. What is more disturbing is that these products are already being sold and consumed without consumer knowledge. “In 2002, The Royal Society itself concluded that GM technology might 'lead to unpredicted harmful changes in the nutritional nature of food'” (Cook 133). Consumers should at least have a choice of what kind of food product they are buying like that which is done between organic and regurlarly grown crops This distinction should be made obvious to the consumer. Other potential health risks include the possibility that by eating genetically modified crops, the modifications could affect our own cells in unpredictable ways.The potential health risks of genetically modified crops should be examined before these products are consumed. Alternatives to eating genetically modified crops include eating regualr old fashioned crops. Other options include the eating of all organic crops to avoid these potential health risks.

Not only is it unclear how genetically modified crops will affect the health of people, enrivonmental risks are also present. “There are a number of issues to consider, including development of resistance in insects against certain crop pesticides, transformation of crops into weeds, harmful effects on non-target organisms, gene flow, and altered uses of agrochemicals on transgenic crops” (Kupier). Proponents of genetically modified food crops state that one of the advantages of using them is that they reduce the use of pesticides. In reality, the reduction of pesticide use is negligable and may actually result in more pesticide getting on the pesticide resistant crops. Other envriornmental risk factors include the mutation of pests and weeds around the genetically modified crops. “indirect effects of glyphosphate in GRS could have effects on insects and wildlife” (Cerdeira et Al.). The problems that result from each are the following. Weeds may become cross polinized with the modified crops and develop a resistance to the pesticides themselves. The result of this could have disastorous envrionmental effects. With the mutation these superweeds could choke out not only genetically modified crops, but could also affect non genetically modified crops in the area as well. The effect of this would result in the need for stronger possibly more dangerous pesticides to kill off the new super weeds. Another possible adverse affect of genetically modified crops is the mutation of pests that eat the crops. Like the new superweeds, pests may evolve to not be affected by the genically modified crops gene manipulation that makes them naturally immune to pests. With this mutation, once again, an increase in strength or use of pesticides would be necessary to kill of the mutated pests. Unfortuneatly, geneetically modified crops may create more of the problems that they were desgined to prevent. Good alternatives to genetically modifying crops would be to put more money into developing safer more effective pedticides and herbacides. With modern technology chemical engineers may be able to invent pesticides and herbicides that have no impact on the environment at all while still efficiently doing their job.

The new era of bio-technology has raised new and important debate over the ethics of man manipulating the genes of natural plants. Genetically modified crops certainly fall into this debate. The idea of man redesigning plant and animal DNA has been subject to debate since it firs came about. The real ethical argument shouldn't be whether or not it is allright for scientists to modify crops and other food in a controlled environment, but the ethical implications of corporations owning the rights to the specifically modified crops or livestock. When a corporation successfully modifies a crop, they then have the right to the patent of the genetically modified crop in question. When a corporation controls a patent, they control how much, when, where, and who can grow their product. They also have the right to take these privlages away. The implications of privately owned mutations of food could be devastating to global food sources. If corporations eventually control the majority of the food sources, then they ultimately control who can eat. This could be devasting to the safety of humanity and the soverignty of nations that depend on agriculture for food sources. Even if genetically modified crops become commonplace, measures must be set to limit the amount of control that corporate entities have to ensure the safety of the global food supply.

Food is a necessity for human life. Genetically modified food is still really just beginning to become a realistic option as the dominant food source option. More likely then not, genetically modified food will become a more prevalant source of food. Researchers need to be sure that genetically modified crops will not have any long term health effects on people, especially if genetically modified crops step up from being a minority food source to a majority food sources. Research should also be continued to be sure that irreversable environmental effects won't become a problem. The ethical implications of genetically modified crops must be closely examined and measures must be taken to ensure that food will remain available for all people in the world and not controlled by a select few. Genetically modified foods must be examined closer before they take a place a reasonable source of food.





Works Cited:
Cerdeira, A.L., et al. "Review of potential environmental impacts of transgenic glyphosate-resistant soybean in Brazil [electronic resource]." Journal of environmental science and health. Part B: Pesticides, food contaminants, and agricultural wastes 42, (June 2007): 539-549. Agricola. EBSCO. UAF Rasmuson and BioSciences Libraries, Fairbanks, AK. 26 Mar. 2009 .

Kuiper, Harry. "Biotechnology, the Environment, and Sustainability." Nutrition Reviews 61.6 (15 June 2003): s106. MasterFILE Premier. EBSCO. UAF Rasmuson and BioSciences Libraries, Fairbanks, AK. 26 Mar. 2009 .

Schmidt, Charles W. "Genetically Modified Foods Breeding Uncertainty." Environmental Health Perspectives 113.8 (Aug. 2005): A526-A533. Health Source - Consumer Edition. EBSCO. UAF Rasmuson and BioSciences Libraries, Fairbanks, AK. 26 Mar. 2009 .

Cook, Guy. Genetically Modified Language. New York: Routledge, 2005.

Airport Security Disaster : Essay 2 Final

The events that occurred on September 11th, 2001 have led to great change in the way that American's view security. After the initial panic, drastic measure were put into place to provide better airport security. More checkpoints, random searches, and the need for identification at nearly every checkpoint and many other new rules made travel very annoying especially in regard to security. Now that several years have passed since September 11, security measures have been scaled back drastically, but still offer their annoyances. Although airport security is a necessity for safe travel, it causes unnecessary travel related problems because it limits what can be carried on a plane, it is often inefficient, and is unreliable.
It is obvious that certain items should not be carried onto an airplane such as guns, explosives, knives, dangerous chemicals, and other things that may potentially be dangerous to travelers. Unfortunately, other measures that are still in place seem to be unnecessary and limit greatly what cannot be carried on to an airplane. For example, it does not seem dangerous to allow people to carry their own water onto a plane yet people are still required to carry liquids in 4 ounce containers excluded a few exceptions, water not being one of them. The list of items that are allowed or prohibited to be carried on a plane is in constant flux and seems to be changing all of the time. The effect of this security measure makes it very difficult and annoying for passengers to figure out what they are allowed to take with them on the airplane and slows security lines down when passengers must remove certain items from their carry on and either have them checked with their luggage or have them thrown away. This can be very frustrating for travelers. Other interesting problems with limiting carry on items is the banning of certain items while other similar items are permitted, making what can be carried on even more confusing for travelers. For example, according the Transportation Security Administration's website, items such as knives, razors, box cutters, and other sharp objects are prohibited, but on the same list it clearly states “Scissors - metal with pointed tips and blades shorter than four inches” (TSA) are permissible. Metal scissors with pointed tips regardless of their size could easily be used as an offensive weapon in the right hands. If scissors are allowed are allowed, then why not allow knitting needles? The TSA ought to come with an easy to comprehend static set of rules that makes sense and allows passengers more freedom in what they can carry on while limiting items that are truly dangerous.
Some inefficiency is to be expected when dealing with any sort of business, but it should not be due to confusing rules and poorly or under trained security officials. For example, random checking is probably the most inefficient aspect of modern airport security. In no way should people be racially profiled or stereotyped, but pulling children, elderly, or even adults out of line randomly is probably the least efficient way to keep travelers secure. A middle-aged man traveling with his four children and wife is almost certainly not planning any sort of deadly action during a flight. People traveling one way with no luggage on the other hand might warrant more scrutiny. By pulling people aside for random security checks, the efficiency and movement of security lines drops drastically. Also, by making people take off jackets and shoes as well as hooded sweatshirts, the amount of time in line increases greatly. Also due to the ever changing rules of what can be carried on a plane, people have to pull out certain items and dig through their bags either by request of security officers or for fear of having certain items thrown away which also effects the efficiency of security at Airports. Once again, with better rules, people would have the ability to move through security lines more efficiently.
The worst part about airport security measures is that they do not actually achieve what they attempt to prevent. Independent studies have shown that although not all the time, the items that the security groups attempt to prevent from getting through do. These items include guns and knives. This is probably the most disturbing aspect of modern security protocol when flying. Many potentially dangerous items such as guns and sharp objects pass through security checks without being detected. According to an article by Mimi Hall “Guns and knives, along with box cutters like those used by the Sept. 11 hijackers, slipped past screeners in recent airport security tests by undercover agents”(Hall). If the screeners can't even keep guns out, reforms to the security systems must be made. Passengers are led to believe that with strict security measures, all is well, but in reality unreliable security screeners may be putting us into more danger by allowing dangerous items through checkpoints.
There will always be a need for airport security. People should be able to feel safe when they travel. That being said, security checkpoints need to be reformed. The TSA needs to come up with a practical list of what can and cannot be brought onto a plane to help with the confusion and limits of what you can or cannot carry on a plane. By doing so they would allow travel to be more comfortable and less confusing. Security checkpoints must become more efficient so that long waits in line or hassle by security agents can be avoided as much as possible. Finally, security checkpoints and screeners need to be more reliable in keeping items that are truly dangerous like knives and guns from getting past security and even better onto a plane. By solving these problems, going through security checkpoints at airports would be a lot more tolerable.



Works Cited
Mimi Hall. "Weapons still getting past airport screeners." USA Today (n.d.). Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Univ of Alaska Fairbanks Rasmuson and BioSciences Libraries, Fairbanks, AK. 23 Mar. 2009 .

"TSA: Prohibited Items." Transportation Security Administration. 25 Mar. 2009
permitted-prohibited-items.shtm>.

Workshop for Ken's Paper

Overall
1. What do you like best about the paper? Be specific.

My favorite part about your paper is that it has a great local flavor to it. It also provides a good local perspective as it is obvious you enjoy fishing on the Kenai river. Your paper also does a good job of showing how important this issue is to you.

2. Email the author and ask for one particular concern that s/he had about the draft. Examine that area and see if you can offer the author helpful suggestions.

I think that all of your paragraphs are good on content, I think it would be best to cut out some of the opinions and definately make sure to cite sources.

3. Does the author clearly express his/her opinion of the topic in the thesis? What argument does the thesis make?

Your opinion is clear in your thesis statement.

4.What group of people agrees with the author? What group disagrees with the author?

People who believe that boat restrictions do not help control pollution on the Kenai River agree with this statement and people who do think boat restrictions work would disagree

5.Does the paper have an argumentative thesis statement using ALTHOUGH and BECAUSE?

Your paper does include an argumentative although because clause.

Content
6. On a scale of 1 to 10, how interesting did you find this paper to read? Be brutally honest! (Friends don’t let friend turn in boring essays!)

I would give this paper a seven on how interesting it is. It is a subject that I was not familiar with but I enjoy fishing so it is interesting to me.

7.Where can the author more fully develop ideas, either by providing examples or explaining/clarifying concepts for the reader? Be specific (e.g. “the 3rd is dullsville”; “the conclusion is really vague”).

Your ideas are there in what I think is one big second paragraph, but they could be organized a lot better. Maybe try splitting this paragraph into a second and third paragraph (this may just have been a formatting error because of the blog site) Also you use a lot of informal "I" and "you" language which should be removed.

8.What kinds of objections might someone who disagrees with the author’s point of view raise? If there are none, go back to #3.

The main objections people would make is that a lot of your claims appear to be opinions. Use more sources to defend your ideas. Also, many would argue that the environmental issues are important and so the regulations should remain in place.

9.Has the author dealt with these objections?
I would address these objections by supporting your theory that the regulations don't actually benefit the environment.

10.Is the relationship between each paragraph and the thesis clear? If not, what suggestions do you have for the author to improve the connection?

The relationship between the thesis and the paragraphs could definately use more organizations. Try using my suggestion from number 7

Style
11. Are there easy transitions from one paragraph to the next, or does the author jump from topic to topic?

Work on your transitions between the intro, body, and conclusions as they are a little jumpy.

12.Does the opening of the essay capture the reader’s attention? How so? If not, what suggestions can you make that might strengthen the opening?

The opening of the essay does capture the attention of the reader by using a good attention getting question about the Kenai river.

13. Does the concluding paragraph serve to bring the discussion to an end that logically follows from the thesis and its direction?

The concluding paragraph is confusing and is fused with the body of the paper. The conclusion should summarize your main points and your thesis.
Research

14.How many different sources are cited in the paper (don’t look at Works Cited; look at the parenthetical citations. The medium does not matter.)

There are no clearly cited sources in your paper which need to be addressed

15. Does the author rely heavily on just 1 or 2 sources, or does the author equally use all of the sources to support the paper’s thesis?

More sources would be helpful and they should be quoted

16.Does the author have more quotes in his/her paper than personal opinion?

There are a LOT of personal opinion in your paper

17.Are there any sources listed on the Works Cited that are not cited within the body of the essay? (This is a no-no)

There are sources that are not cited but it is hard to tell because of the formatting of the works cited portion of the paper.

18. Is all the information retrieved from research, including opinion, ideas, paraphrases, quotes, and statistics, cited with in-text (parenthetical) citations? If not, list specifics of what needs to be cited (friends don’t let friends turn in plagiarized papers).

More citations are definately necessary for your final draft

19. All quotes in research papers should be commented upon. Does the author comment after every quote? If not, help the author decide what the underlying reason behind putting the quote in the paper was.

There are not any direct quotes which should definately be addressed

Essay 3: Rough Draft

The state of Alaska is well known for its majestic beauty. The city of Fairbanks is the largest city in the heart of Alaska is one of the best examples of Alaska's beauty. The summer are amazing and the winters enchanting. Springtime on the other hand is a melty mess of snow and mud. Another unfortunate side effect of spring in Fairbanks is all of the litter that was once hidden by snow during the winter begins to appear. Springtime litter is a major problem in Fairbanks and takes away from the natural beauty of the city. Some cleanup efforts do exist, but litter is still strewn about the city after these clean up efforts take effect. Winter litter can be noticed weeks into summer. Another problem with clean up efforts done by the city is that they do not focus on individual neighborhoods but mainly to the main areas of the city and alongside the freeways. Although springtime cleaning efforts in Fairbanks are common, neighborhoods in the community should organize neighborhood cleaning groups after the snow melts because litter is unsightly, these groups would benefit the community as a whole, and it is an easy way to perform community service.

When snow melts, trash appears every year in Fairbanks. No one wants to visit a city that is riddled with litter. Litter does nothing to increase the natural beauty of Fairbanks. The worst part about al the litter is when it finally starts warming up enough to want to go outside, the amount of litter outside takes away from the joy that the warmth and sunlight bring. For the most part people enjoy going outside and walking in their neighborhoods when it begins to get warm outside. People also want to enjoy the beauty of springtime and the beginning of summer when Fairbanks warms up. By getting in contact with a few neighbors, the amount of littler in local neighborhoods could be reduced dramatically by the efforts of a few people and one afternoon. Because of their close proximity, it would be easy to create flyers about a cleanup effort for the neighborhood and post them around the area as well as slipping them into mailboxes and doorways. By picking a neutral time and mewing place, a lot could be accomplished by a few volunteers and one weekend afternoon.

Fairbanks has always had a strong sense of community. People who live here tend to organize events that benefit the community as a whole. Many things can be done to benefit the community, and cleaning it up is one that is fairly simple to organize and easy to do. Organizing clean up groups not only benefit the individual neighborhoods that are being cleaned, but if the majority of neighborhoods in Fairbanks adopted this practice it would serve the community greatly as a whole. By beautifying the community and cleaning all the unsightly trash, the community benefits.

A lot of people talk about performing community service, but never participate for several reasons. Some say they simply don't have enough time. Others say that the opportunity never arises. The best part about a neighborhood clean effort is it doesn't take much organization, planning, time , or even very much effort. With a few actions and a little bit of organization, a neighborhood could be in tip top shape after one or two afternoons or days of cleaning. Another benefit is any little bit helps, whether it is just you and a few friends, or if the whole neighborhood pitches in. Bu organizing a neighborhood cleanup effort, people can perform the community service they always wanted o with very little effort. All it takes is a few people and a little initiative.

Litter is a problem all over the country from Alaska all the way down to Florida. While the problem of littering is very difficult to eradicate, the act of picking litter up and putting it out of sight is quite simple. Fairbanks problem with litter is that it is cover by snow in the winter and it builds up leaving an unsightly mess during the spring and early months of summer. By organizing neighborhood cleanup efforts, this unsightly mess can be taken care of. Other benefits of neighborhood clean up groups is that they benefit the community as a whole. Neighborhood cleanup groups would also provide an easy way for people to perform community service. While it is impossible to pick up all pieces of litter, neighborhood clean up groups would be a simple and effective way to achieve the removal of unsightly litter, benefit the Fairbanks community, and allow individuals to perform community service in their very own neighborhood.

Run-on Sentences

I don't feel like I have ever really had issues with run-on sentences. If anything, I have a problem with too much or inappropriate punctuation then anything else. The method I employ for avoiding run-on sentences is simple; I try to keep my sentences short and to the point. Now I am not saying that I have never been a victim of an errant run on sentence here and there; I have had my moments. I remember I lost 10% on a grade for a final draft of a paper in high school due to an inadvertent lack of punctuation which resulted in a run-on sentence. At the time I did not really know what a run on sentence was but I taught myself quickly and I have tried to avoid them from that point on. For people that have trouble with run-on sentences, the only advice I can give is if your sentence seems too long, try and split the thoughts up. Also, try and avoid silly punctuation errors because they can come back to haunt you like my incident in high school. I hope to consistently avoid the run-on mistake but it is likely that at some point in the future I will have one and I will make sure I get rid of it before turning in any final drafts.

Research Project Rough Draft:Futuristic Food

Picture biting into a nice big piece of corn on the cob. While it may taste good, there is much more to this piece of food then meets the eye. This particular corn cob has been modified genetically to resist pesticides. Furthermore, the adverse effects of these modifications have not been examined very close. There is no proof that the innocent action of eating corn could have ill effects on the corns consumer. Genetically modified crops are becoming an increasingly popular way to grow food. By modifying the DNA of certain crops, the crops take on new attributes such as the ability to resist pesticides or to grow bigger and faster. With increased popularity among farmers, the implications of genetically modifying food should be examined more closely, especially if genetically modified crops become the preferred choice of product for farmers. Although genetically modified crops have their upside, they are still questionable because there are potential health risks, potential environmental risks, and potential economic risks.
When scientists go in and change the DNA of a food product, they are changing what is going into the consumers body. While studies have been done on the potential health risks of genetically modified crops, the possible long term effects of eating these types of foods has not been determined. “Consumers are eating these foods without any apparent health effects, although some stakeholders caution that greater postmarket surveilence is needed to confirm this.”(Schmidt). The Food and Drug administration is required to do extensive testing to make sure that foods are safe for consumption but so far there is not substantial evidence that there is no possibility for adverse health effects rising from the consumption of genetically modified crops. What is more disturbing is these products are already being sold and consumed without consumer knowledge. “In 2002, The Royal Society itself concluded that GM technology might 'lead to unpredicted harmful changes in the nutritional nature of food'.” (Cook 133). Consumers should at least have a choice. Other potential health risks include the possibility that by eating genetically modified crops, the modifications could affect our own cells in unpredictable ways.The potential health risks of genetically modified crops should be examined before these products are consumed. Alternatives to eating genetically modified crops include eating regualr old fashioned crops. Other options include the eating of all organic crops to avoid these potential health risks.
Environmental concerns are another issue surrounding genetically modiefied crops. “There are a number of issues to consider, including development of resistance in insects against certain crop pesticides, transformation of crops into weeds, harmful effects on non-target organisms, gene flow, and altered uses of agrochemicals on transgenic crops.”(Kupier). Proponents of genetically modified food crops state that one of the advantages of using them is that they reduce the use of pesticides. In reality, the reduction of pesticide use is negligable and may actually result in more pesticide getting on the pesticide resistant crops. Because of this there is a possibility that the consumer might end up consuming crops that have been drenched in round up. Other envriornmental risk factors include the mutation of pests and weeds around the genetically modified crops. “indirect effects of glyphosphate in GRS could have effects on insects and wildlife.”(Cerdeira et Al.). The problems that result from each are the following. Weeds may become cross polinized with the modified crops and develop a resistance to the pesticides themselves. The result of this could have disastorous envrionmental effects. With the mutation these superweeds could choke out not only genetically modified crops, but could also affect non genetically modified crops in the area as well. The effects of this would result in the need for stronger pesticides to kill off the new super weeds. Another possible adverse affect of genetically modified crops is the mutation of pests that eat the crops. Like the new superweeds, pests may evolve to not be affected by the genically modified crops gene manipulation that makes them naturally immune to pests. With this mutation, once again, an increase in strength or use of pesticides would have to be achieved. Unfortuneatly for geneetically modified crops they may fuel what they attempt to prevent. Good alternatives to genetically modifying crops would be to put more money into developing safer more effective pedticides and herbacides. With modern technology chemical engineers may be able to invent pesticides and herbicides that have no impact on the environment at all while still efficiently doing their job.
Another issue brought up by growing genetically modified crops is the ethics behind the act of modifying the plant DNA all together. The idea of man playing god with plant and animal has always been subject to debate. The real ethical argument shouldn't be whether or not it is ok for scientists to modify crops and other food, but the ethical implications of corporations owning the rights to the specifically modified crops or livestock. When a corporation successfully modifies a crop, they then have the right to the patent of the genetically modified crop in question. When a corporation controls a patent, they control how much, when, where, and who can grow their product. They also have the right to take these privlages away. The implications of this could be devastating to global food sources. If corporations eventually control the majority of the food sources, then they ultimately control who can eat. This could be very dangerous in the sense that humanity will have to bend to the whim of whatever th corporations set for food standards. Even if genetically modified crops become the norm, measures must be set to limi the amount of control that corporate entities have over the food supply of the world.
Food is a necessity for human life. Genetically modified food is still really just beginning to become a realistic option for all food sources. More likely then not, genetically modified food will become a more prevelant force as a source of food. Researchers need to be sure that genetically modfied crops will not have any long term health effects on people, especially if genetically modified crops step up from being a minority food source to a majority food sources. Research should also be continued to be sure that irreversable environmental effects won't become a problem. The ethical implications of genetically modified crops must be closely examined and measures must be taken to ensure that food will remain available for all people in the world and not controlled by a select few. Genetically modified foods must be examined closer before they take a place a resonable source of food.





Works Cited:
Cerdeira, A.L., et al. "Review of potential environmental impacts of transgenic glyphosate-resistant soybean in Brazil [electronic resource]." Journal of environmental science and health. Part B: Pesticides, food contaminants, and agricultural wastes 42, (June 2007): 539-549. Agricola. EBSCO. UAF Rasmuson and BioSciences Libraries, Fairbanks, AK. 26 Mar. 2009 .

Kuiper, Harry. "Biotechnology, the Environment, and Sustainability." Nutrition Reviews 61.6 (15 June 2003): s106. MasterFILE Premier. EBSCO. UAF Rasmuson and BioSciences Libraries, Fairbanks, AK. 26 Mar. 2009 .

Schmidt, Charles W. "Genetically Modified Foods Breeding Uncertainty." Environmental Health Perspectives 113.8 (Aug. 2005): A526-A533. Health Source - Consumer Edition. EBSCO. UAF Rasmuson and BioSciences Libraries, Fairbanks, AK. 26 Mar. 2009 .

Cook, Guy. Genetically Modified Language. New York: Routledge, 2005.

Essay 2: Rough Draft

The events the occurred on September 11th, 2001 have led to great change in the way American's view security. After the initial panic, drastic measure were put into place around airport security. More checks, random searchs, the need for identification at nearly every checkpoint and many other new rules made travel a headache. Now that several years have passed since the initial attack, security measures have stepped back drastically, but still offer their annoyances. Although airport security is a necessity for safe travel, it causes unnecessary travel related problems because it limits what can be carried on a plane, it is often inefficient, and is unreliable.
It is certain that certain items should not be carried onto an airplane such as guns, explosives, knives, dangerous chemicals, and other items of that nature. Things begin to seem a little bit ridiculous though when people are no longer allowed to carry on their own water. The ever changing list of items that are allowed or not allowed to be carried on a plane is in constant flux and seems to be changing all of the time. The effect of this security measure makes it very difficult and annoying for passengers to figure out what they are allowed to take with them on the airplane and slows security lines down when passengers must remove certain items from their carry on and either have them checked with their luggage or have them thrown away alltogether. Another strange aspect is the banning of certain objects from being brought on an airplane and the allowence of similar objects. For example, according the the Transportation Security Adminstration's website, items such as knives, razors, box cutters, and other sharp objects are prohibited, but on the same list it clearly states “Scissors - metal with pointed tips and blades shorter than four inches” are permissable. Metal scissors with pointed tips regardless of their size could easily be used as an offensive weapon in the right hands. Also certain items that are banned seemed to be ridiculous such as gel style shoe insoles. The TSA ought to come with with an easy to comprehend static set of rules that makes sense.
Some inefficiency is to be expected when dealing with traveling, but it should not be on the end of trained security officials. For example, random checking is probably the most inefficient aspect of modern airport security. In no way should people be racially profiled or stereotyped, but pulling children, elderly, or even adults out of line randomly is probably the least efficient way to keep travellers secure. A middle aged man travelling with his four children and wife is almost certainly not planning any sort of deadly action midflight. Tying in with carry on limits and changing rules, the searching of bags based on various objects found within can really slow down the seurity process. Once again, with better rules, people would have the ability to move through security lines more efficiently.
The worst part about airport security measures is that they do not actually achieve what they attempt to prevent. Independent studies have show that although not all the time, more often than not, the items that the security groups attempt to prevent from getting through, do. This is probably the most disturbing aspect of modern security protocal when flying. Many potentially dangerous items such as guns and sharp objects pass through security checks without being detected. According to an article by Mimi Hall “Guns and knives, along with box cutters like those used by the Sept. 11 hijackers, slipped past screeners in recent airport security tests by undercover agents.”. If the screeners can't even keep guns out, reforms to the security systems must be made. Passengers are led to believe that with strict security measures, all is well, but in reality unreliable security screenrs may be putting us into more danger.
There will always be a need for airport security. People need to feel safe when they travel. That being said, security checkpoints need to be reformed. The TSA needs to come up with a practical list of what can and cannot be brought onto a plane to help with the confusion and limits of what you can or cannot carry on a plane. Security checkpoints must become more efficient so that long waits in line or hassle can be avoided as much as possible. Finally, security checkpoints and screeners need to be more reliable in keeping items that are truly dangerous from getting onto a plane. By solving these problems, going through security checkpoints at airports would be a lot more tolerable.



Works Cited
Mimi Hall. "Weapons still getting past airport screeners." USA Today (n.d.). Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Univ of Alaska Fairbanks Rasmuson and BioSciences Libraries, Fairbanks, AK. 23 Mar. 2009 .

"TSA: Prohibited Items." Transportation Security Administration. 23 Mar. 2009
permitted-prohibited-items.shtm>.

Reading Response Week 7 and 8 #3

The visual argument presented here is done primarily in Spanish for several reasons. One reason is so the ad's message is not lost by being presented in English when it is targeted to Spanish speaking Latino men. If the message were in English, Spanish speaking men may feel that the add is not really speaking to them. By having the message in Spanish there is no denying that the add is about and for depression in Spanish speaking Latino men. Another reason the message is in Spanish is so that the message can get across to Spanish speaking men that live in the U.S. And may not speak English at all. The argument is also made in Spanish to evoke a feeling of pride for being Spanish speaking and shows that it is all right to feel depressed even as a Spanish speaking Latino male, even though traditionally it is not considered manly for Latino men to discuss their feelings. The language choice once again makes the argument much more relatable and powerful to Spanish speaking target audience then it would be if it had been done in English. That is the relationship to the target audience and the choice of primarily using the Spanish language in the add. The designers of the add chose to include the phrase “Real Men, Real Depression” to broaden their audience to non-Spanish speaking Latino men, as they will be able to understand that the message is targeted to them even if they do not speak Spanish themselves.. The inclusion of the non-English phrase helps to include people that are not of Latino decent, even though the add is clearly targeted to men of the Latino community.

Reading Response Week 7 and 8 #2

Goodman assumes that her readers have some sort of cultural knowledge about how being thin is considered to be more attractive then being large in American culture. Goodman also assumes that her readers are aware of the cultural impact television has had on American women (not to mention men, but that is beside the point). Goodman's use of allusions to American television programs helps to build her argument by making familiar references that American readers would understand. The Alley McBeal reference makes the reader think of Calista Flockhart and her unhealthy low weight. The reference to the character from The Practice invokes an image of a larger women being in a starring position on a television program and having it be OK. These allusions help to give Goodman's ethos a sense that she knows what she is talking about because she can pick out examples of weight issues from American television. The Flockhart image is what Goodman feels we should move away from and the Manheim image is what she feels we should be moving towards as being acceptable in our society in order to show girls that it is OK to be a big women and that being too skinny can be unhealthy. By referring to the television programs she also adds an element of humor to her argument. The allusions to television also help contribute to her argument by relating the thesis of her argument to her readers. Goodman uses these allusions as examples of how women's weight on television affects girl's body image views about what is beautiful. By using relatable examples, she clarifies her stand on the issue.

Reading Response Week 7 and 8 #1

Marquez begins her argument by stating with certainty that spanish-speaking Americans do not speak Spanish in public to alienate non-Spanish speaking individuals, but because in a free country like America she believes people should have the right to speak in any language they choose in public. Marquez justifies Spanish speakers in several ways. Marquez states that a lot of Spanish speakers speak in Spanish to their parents out of respect and do not intend to alienate non-spanish speakers. Marquez also states that speaking Spanish is a way of maintaining cultural roots. The fear that Marquez states non-spanish speakers may have is that not speaking English is unpatriotic or un-American. Marquez refutes this assumption by pointing out that steps had been taken by the government to accommodate bi-lingual or even non-English speaking citizens. Marquez also points out that America's founding fathers believed strongly that the United States government should not force any specific language on any of it's citizens. Marquez also responds to this fear by pointing out that many non-English speaking citizens have spoken in their native tongue in the U.S. For years due to the levels of immigration that have occurred in the United States. Marquez is also careful to point out that many non-English speaking Americans have fought and died for the United States as a response to this fear. Marquez also seeks to respond to this fear by not tolerating the exclusion of non-bilingual speakers in groups of bilingual people. By doing this, she hopes to show that Spanish speakers do not intend to be rude to anyone, but if they are having a private conversation amongst bilingual or Spanish speakers, they should have the right to speak in Spanish without feeling ashamed for doing so.

Working Thesis and Source List

Although genetically modified crops have their upside, they are still questionable because there are potential health risks, potential environmental risks, and they raise important ethical questions.

Craig, Wendy, et. al. “"An overview of general features of risk assessments of genetically modified crops [electronic resource]." EBSCOhost. Dec. 2008. UAF. 17 Feb. 2009. .

This article provides scientific risk assessments on some of the risks of genetically modified crops, and also explains how risk assessments are administered. The issues discussed are the health hazards, pest evolutionary resistance, and the integration of GMCs into other species. This is the first article I read o the subject and it provides excellent background information on what genetically modified crops are and even presents risks that I hadn't heard about like the potential to create more antibiotic resistant bacteria. This article is written by genetic engineers for genetic engineers.


Vain, Philippe. “ Thirty years of plant transformation technology development [electronic resource].”
EBSCOhost. Mar. 2007. UAF. 17 Feb. 2009. <>.

This article provides the history over the last 30 years of the progression of GM crops. It covers the developmental technology involved in creating GM. It discusses the technology by region, species, and provides a plethora of scientific data. This article will be good for my paper not necessarily for its content but mainly for the data it provides on GM crop trends. Once again, the intended audience for this article is genetic engineers. The author works in a research facility in the department of genetics.

Vergragt, Philip J.; Brown, Halina Szejnwald. “Genetic engineering in agriculture: New approaches for risk management through sustainability reporting [electronic resource].” EBSCOhost. July. 2008. UAF. 28 Feb. 2009..

This article provides a look at more issues involving GM crops. It provides more cut and dry information on the ethics and health risks including the ethics of patenting living organisms. It also reviews some of the public backlash against GM crops and government regulations regarding GM crops. I like this article because it is a little easier to understand compared to my previous articles which are more geared towards scientists. This article seems to be geared more towards the general public. Vergragt works for MIT and The Tellus Institute. Brown works at Clark University in the environmental science and policy department.

Sheldon, Ian. “Food Principles: Regulating Genetically Modified Crops after the 2006 WTO Ruling.” EBSCOhost. Fall/Winter. 2007. UAF. 28 Feb. 2009. .

This article provides information on a US challenge to EU regulations of GM crops. The author is a professor at Ohio State University. This article covers more of the ethical questions raised by GM crops, but also goes over some of the considered risks. This article, like the article above, is more politically based and provides more of a general knowledge on the subject of GM crops. I like this article because it not only focuses on the ethics of GM crops, but also provides information about some of the environmental and health concerns.
Horlick-Jones, Tom, John Walls, and Jenny Kitzinger. "Bricolage in action: learning about, making sense of, and discussing, issues about genetically modified crops and food." EBSCOhost. March
2007. UAF. 28 Feb. 2009..

This article is another good source that provides information on what GM crops are. This article is vastly different from the other articles I have gathered so far. I like it because it provides an outline of group discussions about GM crops in the UK. This article then analyzes these discussions. This is good because it gives me some information on how normal people feel about GM crops. I am also beginning to notice that this issue is very prominent in the EU. Jones-Horlick works for the Cardiff School of Social Sciences, Cardiff University,. UK. The other two authors are also affiliated with universities.

Editors, The. "The Green Gene Revolution.." EBSCOhost. Aug. 2004. UAF. 28 Feb. 2009.
.

This article argues for the use of GM crops. It talks about that fact that people should embrace this new technology. The article even states that the rhetoric surrounding the issue is more damaging then the crops themselves. I like this article because it offers a view opposing my thesis. The authors are the editors of Scientific American.

Schmidt, Charles W. “Genetically Modified Foods Breeding Uncertainty.” EBSCOhost. Aug. 2005. UAF. 28 Feb. 2009. .

This article talks about why farmers like using GM crops and also goes over why some countries embrace them and some don't. Another good thing about this article is it goes over more potential health risks, the most prominent being the allergenic properties of GM crops. I also like that this article has a map showing which countries grow, don't grow, or have even outlawed GM crops.
This article is nice because it goes over both sides of the argument while remaining neutral. The author is a journalist for Environmental Health Sciences.

Kuiper, Harry. “Biotechnology, the Environment, and Sustainability.” EBSCOhost. June 2003. UAF.
28 Feb. 2009. .

This article talks about research done on the environmental effects of GM crops. Its main idea is that not enough long term effect research has been done on the subject. He discusses what questions researchers should be asking and describes that his research is looking for the unintended effects of GM food and plants. I like this article because in contrast to my other articles he is proposing what types of things could potentially go wrong and proposes that they need to be investigated further without saying GM crops are in and of themselves bad. The author is a Dr. but I could not find any more information pertaining to what type of doctor he is. H e wrote this for Nutrition Reviews.


Williams, Stephen. “Rather than GM, here comes nuclear food.” EBSCOhost. Jan. 2009. UAF. 2 March. 2009. .
This article is about how nuclear plants provides a better alternative than GM crops. Nuclear crops can provide the same results as GM crops without the worry. This article does not really compare with my other sources except the fact that it mentions GM crops. I like this article because it offers an alternative method to the ends GM crops attempt to achieve. It will allow me to provide alternatives to GM crops. The author is a writer for New African.

Kanter, James. "Europe to Allow Two Bans on Genetically Altered Crops." New York
Times 2 Mar. 2009, natl. ed. New York Times. 3 Mar. 2009
03biotech.html?scp=1&sq=genetically%20modified%20crops&st=cse>.

This is an article that is about how the E.U. allowed Austria and Hungry to maintain bans on GM crops. This article is like the WTO article I have. It is unique in the fact that it is about the banning of GM crops. I like this article because it will help strengthen the idea of GM crops being unethical.
The author James Kanter covers European affairs and has a degree in history from Colombia and a degree in journalism from City College in London.

Weiss, Rick. "2 Reports At Odds On Biotech Crops." Washington Post 14 Feb. 2008,
natl ed. The Washington Post.com. 3 Mar. 2009
AR2008021303639.html>.

This article talks about the dueling argument for GM crops between the biotech companies and the environmental groups. It is about dueling reports from each group reporting the pros and cons of GM crops, specifically ones with pesticide modifications. It is like other articles I have that talk of the dangers of using crops modified to resist pesticides. The articles target audience is the general public. The author is a staff writer from the Washington Post.

Pence, Gregory E. Designer Food. Oxford: Rowman and Littlefield Publishers,Inc., 2002.

This is a book that covers all aspects of GM food including crops. I have not had time to read it all yet, but I did read the chapter on GM crops. His theme is that they are not harmful, but he does believe that the environmental effects could be problematic. This book is targeted to the general public. The author has been a teacher of Bioethics in the philosophy department and School of Medicine at University of Alabama.

Cerdeira, Antonio L., et al. "Review of potential environmental impacts of transgenic glyphosate- resistant soybean in Brazil." EBSCOhost. June 2007. UAF. 3 March. 2009. .

The article objectively looks at all aspects of GM effects on the environment. Specifically the article is talking about genetically modified soy bean plants in brazil. It points out where GM crops have no effect but does show where they do, especially in non-targeted organism such as insects and weeds. Drifts to non-transgenic crops are a problem. This article is similar to my others in that it presents scientific evidence regarding GM crops. It is different in the fact that it focuses on a specific study crop in Brazil. The audience it is targeted at is that of the scientific community. The authors are members of the Brazilian Agricultural Department of Research.

Vasil, Indra K. . "A short history of plant biotechnology [electronic resource]." EBSCOhost. Oct. 2008.
UAF. 3 March. 2009..

This article provides good background information on the history of GM crops. It provides scientific explanations for how genetically modified crops are produced and the history of methods used. I like this article because it will provide me with some background information for introducing the concept behind genetically modified crops. This article closely resembles the other scholarly articles I have and it is great that I now have some background info. The target audience for this article are scientists. The author is connected to the University of Florida, but it does not specifically say if him or her is a grad student or a professor.

Wesseler, J.H.H. ed. Environmental Costs and Benefits of Transgenic Crops. Dordrecht: Springer, 2005.

This book is a collection of scholarly articles. It ranges from articles on the environmental impacts of GM crops to the ethics surrounding GM crops and the costs and benefits of GM crops. I have not had a chance to go through the whole book but the introduction sums up the order of topics addressed and gives brief background information on each subject. This book is written by scientists but it is very approachable to any educated individual. The editor is a member of the Environmental Economics and Natural Resource Group a Wageningen University in the Netherlands.

Plagarism

These articles actually really helped me to understand acceptable ways to paraphrase and now I am not nervous about plagiarism anymore. Basically I learned to make sure you use your own words and not just change a few words around from the original passage and to ALWAYS cite your work even if you don't use a direct quote.

Reading Response Week 6: Visual Arguments

The argument being made by Lester is that the idea of racial preference is ridiculous when arguing about why or why not a person gets into college. Lester expresses his point by having the girl sarcastically remarking that it must be the shoes (racial preference) that got the boy into college. The Draughon comic shows the irony of the fact that the supreme court is making decisions about racial diversity when there is only one African American sitting on the supreme court bench. The Thompson comic is pointing out the many disadvantages that African Americans face just growing up let alone getting into college and it attempts to justify affirmative action by displaying these barriers. Wilkinson's comic shows that many students get into college through different advantages that not every applicant has and that regardless of that fact many people still place the blame on minorities. The Camp comic is arguing that some people have the advantages like SAT prep, tutoring, etc. to get into college, and that no matter what, some people will have advantages that others will not. The strongest argument being made is the one presented by Wilkinson. Wilkinson's comic shows in the most clear way that people will always have advantages that others do not in regards to college acceptance and that minorities face most of the blame when it is common in all groups, not just minorities. The weakest argument is the one presented by Lester. It is hard to understand what point Lester is trying to make. While he does present an argument, the other comics presented their arguments much more clearly.

Reading Response Week 6: Ralli

The controversy present in Ralli's article hinge on definition because the main issue is how to define what victims of hurricane Katrina were doing when they took food that did not belong to them. The African American being called a looter implies that he was doing something illegal while the white couple were merely carrying food they found out of necessity for survival. The relevant terms present are looter and carrier. The controversy is found by the fact that both parties were most likely getting food out of necessity but one party was described as criminal and the other as innocent of any wrong doing, but merely foraging for survival. The AP defined looting as anyone being seen entering a store and coming out with some sort of good, not necessarily limited to food or beverage. If the subject of the photograph was not seen entering the store, the AP described them as carrying food. Getty Images had a similar definition to AP's, and the photographer stated that he had not seen the couple enter the store, they were merely in front of a store where items were floating out, so he would not describe what they were doing as looting. Therefore the AP photographer described the subject of the photo as looting based on AP's definition of what the subject was doing and the Getty Images photographer described the subject of the photo as carrying food and drink based on the Getty Images definition of what they were doing. To be honest I prefer the photographer from Getty Images definition to both the AP definition and the Getty Images definition. If people were carrying electronics or things not necessary for survival, then they should definitely be labeled as looters. However, in a desperate situation like hurricane Katrina, anyone gathering food and beverage when there was a severe lack of both, should not be described as a criminal because it was in the interest of their own survival.

Week 5 Reading Response 3

Each category appeals to exactly what their names imply. The courage category appeals to the individual who views the ad to have the courage to do what it takes to help someone they know get help with drug or alcohol abuse. The regret category obviously appeals to feelings of empathy. The image of the tire and the text remind the viewer of something that happened in their life that they really regretted doing and the way they felt after doing the regretful act. The viewer would not want to repeat such a regretful act or feel like that again. The I am category appeals to the image of well rounded people (young people) that the viewer will most likely want to identify with and strive to be. The appeals in the courage category are linked to the subject of a girlfriend feeling the need to confront her boyfriend about his drug abuse. The image that is used shows a young, average looking couple that many teens can relate to. The subject is talking to someone you care about about their drug abuse. The text of the courage add states two of the negative possible outcomes of the girls conversation about drug abuse with her boyfriend but ties it all together by stating that by doing so, she really does care about him. The regret add uses the image of a bent bike tire which ties in with the text and subject of hitting a small child while being under the influence of marijuana. The I am category uses the subject and images of people that may be stereotyped as drug users, specifically marijuana. The texts aims to show that these stereotypes are often false and appeals to the viewers desire to be a well rounded individual.

Week 5 Lead Sentences

http://www.grist.org/advice/daughter/2009/02/26/index.html

This is the lead sentence I liked the best. It is a delayed lead sentence. The main reason I liked it is because I wanted to find out more of what was meant by "gumbo z'herbes".

Week 5 Reading Response 2

Zwier's assumption that wearing a button that states god is not a democrat or a republican is not divisive maybe holds true at a Christian college, but could be considered divisive elsewhere. It is a good way of making clear that the students want to show that they make a distinction between a religion and politics. Because the school is a Christian university, it is only fair to assume that the students attending are Christian so talking about god in a commencement speech might not seem unfair. The real problem they have is making assumptions about where people stand politically based on their religion. It is also important that Zwier points out that the use to the visual argument is to show that all students don't associate being Christian with being republican and that political alignments have nothing to do with religious ones in most cases. Wearing the buttons does not have nearly the same implications that boycotting the whole graduation would. Boycotting the graduation sends a strong statement that the students are very offended by the idea that George Bush would associate Christianity with the republican party. That statement is much stronger then the comparatively quiet yet strong statement that the buttons make. By boycotting the whole ceremony all together the students would be implying that it is so deeply offensive that Bush makes the connection between the republican party, his administration, and Christianity that they want nothing to do with either Bush or the graduation ceremony. The buttons are a good way of letting people know that they don't want to draw the same connection, but are not so offended by it that they are not willing to participate in anything having to do with said connection.

Week 5 Reading Response 1

Tannen's account of mother/daughter relationships can be summed up by saying that comments, questions, or actions coming from someone who is held in such high regard can have much stronger effects on the receiver (the receiver being the daughter). I agree with Tannen's article mostly out of personal experience. I feel that these strong types of feelings arise not just in mother/daughter relationships, but also in conversations with either parent, be it son/mother, father/daughter, etc.. As a kid, we look to our parents to teach us right and wrong. By doing this, we look to our parents as being almost all-knowing when it comes to how we should act. As we grow older and more independent of our parents, we begin to decide for ourselves what is right or wrong based on our life experience and build confidence of our own knowledge of said right and wrong. When parents question this knowledge or reassure it, it is easy to react with strong feelings that either you've done right or resentment towards your parents for criticizing your decisions made as an independent adult. As far as mother/son relationships go, there is no difference. I react the same way to my mother and father when it comes to the issue of the way they view who I am, positive or negative. The only case where there is a possibility for a difference is if there is a noticeably stronger connection to either of the two parents, or the lack of a father or mother figure, in which case, it being mother or father wouldn't matter at all.

Evaluation Essay Final Draft: Hardcore Dancing Blues

It can been seen at almost every show that has bands that play music categorized as metal core, hardcore, screamo, and many other obscure genre names that end in core or mo. People standing in the middle of the crowd doing a performance of their own. Wild punches, roundhouse kicks, jumps, all done remotely in rhythm with the music being performed by the band. Dancing in this style is often referred to as hardcore dancing. Although modern hardcore music has become popular amongst many people, the hardcore dancing style is a nuisance because people look silly while doing it, it is more fun to watch the band than the audience dancing, and it can be dangerous for other people .
Dancing to music should be expressive and no one should feel silly while doing it if it makes them feel good. What is so interesting about hardcore dancing, is that even though people consider it a dance, to an outside observer it appears to be some sort of strange martial arts demonstration. Most people can recognize certain movements as dance even out of context. Jumping around doing roundhouse kicks and throwing punches have their place in a proper setting, but at a concert and out of context it makes the person look crazy. Take a move known as windmilling for example. It involves swinging ones arms around in big circles very fast. Even at a show (let alone not at a show) it looks ridiculous and invokes the image of siblings trying to hit each other seemingly without doing it on purpose by swinging their arms and walking towards each other. The acts described above are just some aspects of hardcore dancing, and all of them look ridiculous, and barely represent any form of dancing, in or out of a concert setting.
When people go to the concert, it is not unheard of that they would like to dance to the band's music. At the same time, many people attend concerts to watch the band and enjoy the band's performance. Normally a happy medium results, with people being able to dance and or watch the show without interfering with each other. At hardcore shows hardcore dancers generally take up much of the space right in the middle of the dance floor. Dancers on the dance floor may seem to make sense, but generally hardcore/metalcore bands play in smaller venues where the dance floor is really just the open space in front of the stage where everyone who wants to watch, dancing or not, has to stand. When hardcore dancers occupy this space, it is very distracting and takes away from the bands performance. It is hard to enjoy yourself and the band when you have to be worried about getting clocked in the head by an errant roundhouse kick or flying fist. Hardcore dancing takes up such a large area due to the nature of the dancers movements and the dancers desire not to hit each other; therefore it is hard to get in the area in front of the stage to watch. The occupation of this space leads to the people who just want to watch having to form a large perimeter around the sides of the venue, sometimes a very small group of people in the front of the stage, and the area in the back behind the hardcore dancers. The perimeter effectively forms a circle, and the center of this circle (most of the space in the venue) is occupied by people hardcore dancing. The effect of this is that unless you are in the middle of the hardcore dancing madness, you don't get a very good spot to watch the show.
The violent nature of hardcore dancing is troubling. Granted the music itself is very aggressive, but that is why people listen to it. That being said, no one wants to attend a concert and leave with a black eye, concussion, or worse. Hardcore dancers doing flying kicks and throwing random punches in every direction frequently hit innocent bystanders. No one should have to worry about their personal health or safety when attending the show. Even the dancers themselves should worry about hitting the wrong person who might be much bigger and not so happy about being struck. Even though hardcore dancers generally don't intend to hurt anyone, more often then not, someone does get hurt, and the result isn't good for anybody.
Hardcore music is fun and exciting. While people should have the right to express themselves any way they want to the music (which is admittedly aggressive in nature), hardcore dancers should take into account that hardcore dancing does have an impact on other people. The dancers don't need to be doing karate type moves in the middle of a crowd. Hardcore dancing also takes much away from the bands performance and sometimes can make a normally enjoyable experience miserable. Hardcore dancers need to realize that they are putting other people in danger of getting hurt when they are not paying attention. Hardcore dancing doesn't need to be abolished, but perhaps the dancers should start taking other concertgoers into consideration and come up with a solution that works for everyone.

Evaluation Essay 1st Draft

It can been seen at almost every show that has bands that play music categorized as metal core, hardcore, screamo, and many other obscure genre names that end in core. People in the middle of the crowd doing all sorts of wild punches, kicks, jumps, all in rhythm with the music that is being played by the band. Dancing such as this has earned the moniker hardcore dancing. Although modern hardcore music has become popular amongst many people, the hardcore dancing style is a nuisance because people look silly while doing it, it is more fun to watch the band than the audience dancing, and it can be dangerous for other people .
Dancing to music should be expressive and no one should feel silly while doing it, but do people really think that showing off their karate moves to a crowd of people makes them look cool? Self expression is one thing, but punching at the floor to loud music just looks silly. Is the floor the target of said dancers aggression? Did the floor wrong this person in some way? The answer of course is not likely. Jumping around doing roundhouse kicks and throwing punches has its place in a proper setting, but at a concert it more or less makes the person look crazy. Windmilling (the act of swinging ones arms around in a big circle) only evokes the image of a four year old walking towards their sibling and saying “If I hit you, its your own fault because it is obvious I am swinging my arms around, so get out of my way or you will get hit”. All of the acts described above are just some aspects of hardcore dancing, and all of them look ridiculous in a concert setting.
When people go to the concert, it is not unheard of that they would like to dance to the bands music. At the same time though, many people would like to watch the band and enjoy the bands performance. At hardcore shows, hardcore dancers generally take up a lot of space right in the middle of the dance floor. Now seeing as it is a dance floor, this may seem OK, but generally these bands are playing in smaller venues where the dance floor is really just the open space in front of the stage where everyone who wants to watch, dancing or not, has to stand. When hardcore dancers occupy this space, it is very distracting and takes away from the bands performance. It is hard to enjoy yourself and the band when you have to be worried about getting clocked in the head by an errant roundhouse kick or flying fist. Also because they occupy such a large area, it is hard to get in the area in front of the stage, leading to people who just want to watch to form a large perimeter around the sides of the venue, sometimes the front, and the area in the back behind the hardcore dancers. By doing this, unless you are in the middle of the hardcore dancing madness, you don't get a very good spot to watch the show.
The violent nature of hardcore dancing is also quite troubling. No one wants to attend a concert and leave with a black eye, concussion, or worse. Hardcore dancers doing flying kicks and throwing random punches in every direction frequently hit innocent bystanders. No one should have to worry about their personal health or safety when attending the show. Even though hardcore dancers generally don't intend to hurt anyone, more often then not, someone does get hurt.
Hardcore music is fun and exciting. While people should have the right to express themselves any way they want to the music (which admittedly is aggressive in nature), hardcore dancers should take into account that hardcore dancing does affect other people. The dancers look silly when they dance this way. Hardcore dancing distracts from the bands performance and sometimes can make a normally enjoyable experience miserable. Hardcore dancers also need to realize that they are putting other people in danger of getting hurt when they are not paying attention. Also, if an errant kick lands on someone with little patience, the dancers themselves may end up getting more then a dirty look from the person they hit. Hardcore dancing doesn't need to be abolished, but perhaps the dancers should start taking other concertgoers into consideration.

Week 3 Response

Lamott uses a very casual writing style to ease the reader into a subject that can be stressful or even downright frightening. Lamott makes the reader feel comfortable by using an informal and personal style of writing. The reader can feel Lamott's stress about writing first drafts which allows them to feel better about his or her own first draft. Lamott also makes the reader feel comfortable with writing their own first draft by showing how hard and nerve racking it can be for her to write a first draft, even though she is a professional writer. Lamott relaxes the reader which allows her point of not being too nervous about how bad a first draft can be, and that it is all right for first drafts to be bad, to come across quite clearly.
The best suggestions that Lamott makes about first drafts are to sit down and just write it, and to let it sit for awhile and then come back and make changes. Her suggestion of just writing the draft is definitely my favorite and most helpful. I find that it is much harder to sit and think about writing a first draft than it is to just sit down and go for it. It can be surprising how well a first draft can start flowing once it has been started. Lamott's other suggestion of leaving the draft alone for a while is one that I had never really thought about. It makes sense that by letting the draft sit in your sub-conscious for a little wile, it allows you to look at it from a different state of mind than the one you were in when you wrote it. It gives your brain a chance to settle down so you can go back and look it over and make the necessary changes without driving yourself crazy trying to do everything at once.

Week 2 Response

Gender policing is a practice that takes place in advertising with or without the target of the advertisement even realizing that it is happening. Gender policing perpetuates stereotypes quite simply by reinforcing ideas of what it means to be a man, women, but may even expand into other types of policing such as what it means to be African American, environmentalist, etc.. These stereotypes are reinforced in almost all aspects of advertising including television commercials, print, internet ads, and more. By repetitive bombardment of stereotypes, it is easy for one to get caught up in the ideas put forth by advertisements and shape their individual role, consciously or sub-consciously, based around the ideas of what those roles are, which is decided not by society, but by advertising agencies. Whether or not one should live up to these roles is ultimately up to the individual, but because of the increasing amount of advertising viewed by people every day, it is easy for one to feel that they must act out these stereotypes to become a true man, woman, etc.. Other examples of this type of this type of advertising is easily seen in cigarette ads. Rugged men should smoke Marlboro cigarettes. Women should smoke Virginia Slims. African Americans should smoke Kool brand cigarettes. Rich people smoke only Nat Sherman brand cigarettes. These are all examples of gender policing, race policing, and even status in society policing. Companies use this form of advertising in a very clever fashion to sell their product. The policing type of ads make people feel that they need to use a certain product to reinforce who they think they are or even to portray an image of who they want to be seen as. Most people will feel the need to buy a product that best fits the self-image they would like to portray. That is how these ads succeed. The disadvantages of this type of advertising is the alienation factor. The policing ads alienate many who feel that they don't fit into the target demographic for the product. Men generally won't buy products that are targeted to females and vice versa. What the companies don't realize is they would probably sell more of the product if the ads were geared towards the general population and not simply specific groups.

Writing Assignment 1

English 111 should be a good class for me to get back into to my academic writing style, as I have taken some time off since high school. Through careful planning and time management skills, I should be able to balance my other classes by following and sticking to a plan based around the syllabus. After reviewing the syllabus I have come up with a plan to succeed based on its structure. I am taking 13 credits this semester, and should not be going too crazy with this course on top of my regular schoolwork, as long as I stay on top of things.
After reviewing the syllabus, I definitely noticed a pattern in the flow of work. The pattern that I noticed is reading and responses, a quiz once a week, and generally having some sort of major assignment, or at least, a component of a major assignment, due at the end of the week every week. I plan to do my readings, responses, and my quizzes during the regular school week. I will tackle the larger assignments (essays and research mostly on the weekends because I will have a fair amount of time. I will also work on the larger assignment components during any other spare time I have as needed. With this strategy, I should be able to keep up with my workload and maintain a low stress level by not trying to do everything at once.
I am currently enrolled in 13 credits for this semester which is technically full time, but not so much to make me melt into a pile of stressed out college student. I am currently a freshman attending the UAF main campus here in Fairbanks. For my first year I have decided to get a lot of the core courses out of the way. Last semester I accomplished knocking a few of the core classes off my list with good grades, giving me a good confidence boost as well as a boost to my GPA. I hope to accomplish this again this semester to maintain a high GPA for when I move up to upper level courses. I hope to have another successful semester not only in this class, but in my other classes as well.
I hope this diagnostic essay has helped let everyone learn more about me, my role as a new student at UAF, and what kind of person I am. By studying the syllabus, I believe I have a good overview of the class will run, and I believe I have come up with a good plan to achieve this goal. As a relatively new student, my goal this semester is to manage my workload in the best way I can to avoid stress. I am looking forward to a great semester in this online course!