Reflection on Project Three

In the post below, I will be answering nine questions in order to reflect on Project Three.

Worm That Turned. "Peacock." May 7, 2011 via Wikipedia. Public Domain Dedication.

1. What specifically was revised from one draft to another?

I revised the direction of my draft. I included more of my own commentary than before and made it an actual argument.

2. Point to global changes: How did you reconsider your thesis or organization?

I reconsidered my points I was making. I changed the content of my subheadings but kept my general structure.

3. What lead to these changes? A reconsideration of audience or purpose?

The changes were due to a reconsideration of purpose; at first, I didn't really think about my purpose or direction of my draft but after revising I did.

4. How do these changes affect your credibility as an author?

They help my credibility because I have a clear purpose and direction in my draft now; my argument is more logical and understandable.

5. How will these changes better address the audience or venue?

The audience will be able to better understand my purpose and position with my revisions. Also, By revising, I keep my audience more in mind and direct my argument to fit that.

6. Point to local changes: How did you reconsider sentence structure and style?

Because my genre is so informal, I tried to keep my sentences relatively simple and understandable. I tried to avoid academic word choice and tried to keep my information concise.

7. How will these changes assist your audience in understanding your purpose?

By changing my structure and sentences, my draft will appeal to all audiences. Because of this, anyone can understand my position and purpose.

8. Did you have to reconsider conventions of the particular genre you're writing in?

I did not really have to reconsider the conventions because I've been writing blog posts for thirteen weeks now and my genre is a blog post.

9. Finally, how does the process of reflection help you reconsider your identity as a writer?

The reflection process always makes me realize how much my draft grows through revision. Also, it helps me understand how I have grown as a writer. I also feel by admitting a first draft is never perfect, I am able to edit and reconstruct to have an eve stronger final draft.

Publishing Public Argument

In the post below, I will be providing a link to the final draft of Project Three. In addition, I will be answering a chart to give the reader an idea of the direction of my project and providing three examples of the genre I was writing in. 

Jen Keys. "Beyonce." May 7 2007 via Wikipedia. Public Domain Dedication. 

A copy of my Project Three draft can be found here.

1. Mark with an "x" where you feel your target audience currently stands on the issue (before reading/watcing/hearing your argument) below:

←----------------------------------------------------|----X----------------------------------------------------->

Strongly                                            Totally neutral                                                    Strongly 

agree                                                                                                                          disagree

2. Now mark with an "x" where you feel your target audience should be (after they've read/watched/heard your argument) below:

←----------------------------X------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------->

Strongly                                            Totally neutral                                                    Strongly

agree                                                                                                                          disagree

3. Check one (and only one) of the argument types below for your public argument:

       
  __X__ My public argument etablishes an original pro position on an issue of debate.

       

4. Briefly explain how your public argument doesn’t simply restate information from other sources, but provides original context and insight into the situation:

I use ideas from articles but expand and include my own viewpoints and positions. I provide commentary on why GMOs are not bad based on my outside information.

5. Identify the specific rhetorical appeals you believe you've employed in your public argument below:

Ethical or credibility-establishing appeals

                    __X__ Adopting a tone that is inviting and trustworthy rather than distancing

                    __X__ Arranging visual elements properly 

                    __X__ Appealing openly to the values and beliefs shared by the audience 

Emotional appeals

                
                    __X__ Employing an appropriate level of formality for the subject matter 

                    __X__ Use of “shocking” statistics in order to underline a specific point

                    __X__ Use of imagery to create an appropriate emotional impact for the debate

                    __X__ Employing an engaging and appropriate tone of voice for the debate

           

Logical or rational appeals

       

                    __X__ Using statistics from credible sources in order to establish trends, or patterns

                    __X__ Using expert opinions that help affirm your stance or position

                    __X__ Effective organization of elements, images, text, etc. 

                    __X__ Clear transitions between different sections of the argument

                    __X__ Crafted sequencing of images/text/content in order to make linear arguments

Examples:

Example One

Example Two

Example Three

Reflection on Project Three Draft

In the post below, I will be providing links to my peer review sheets and also reflecting on my Project Three Drafts by answering questions.

Twehrstein. "Longhorn." November  2014 via Pixaby. Public Domain Dedication.

I peer reviewed Nick's Project Three draft and Jayni's Project Three draft. 

1. Who reviewed your Project 3 rough draft?

Nick and Brandonpeer reviewed my Project Three draft. 

2. What did you think and/or feel about the feedback you received?

Nick's feedback made me feel good about my draft. He gave me pretty high scores and also good advice on how to make my argument stronger. I was a little confused when he said my genre wasn't clear but I will make sure to fix it. Brandon didn't provide a link to the peer review sheet but made comments directly on my draft. His comments helped me to understand what aspects need help and what parts I can clarify. 

3. What aspects of Project 3 need to most work going forward [Audience, Purpose, Argumentation, or Genre]? How do you plan on addressing these areas? 

I will work mainly on genre conventions and argument. I will make sure I use more blog conventions in my draft so the reader understands it's a blog post; for example, shorter paragraphs and more white space. Also, I will try and find more outside support so my argument is more credible. 

4. How are you feeling overall about the direction of your project after peer review and/or instructor conferences this week?

I feel a lot better about my argument. At first I was nervous about the informality and whether or not my own opinions were okay to use because in previous assignments I would have to back up my argument with outside information. In the genre I picked through, my own opinions are perfect acceptable. 

Draft of Public Argument

In the post below, I will be providing a link to the draft of my public argument.

Lindsey Bieda. "Skittle Heart." November 11, 2006 via Flickr. Public Domain Dedication.

When you are editing, can you please make sure my argument is fully supported and makes sense please! Also, if you could tell me whether or not it fits the conventions of a blog post, I'd appreciate it. A copy of my draft can be found here.

Considering Visual Elements

In the post below, I will be answering questions to consider visual elements for Project Three.

Evan-Amos. "Pumpkin-Pie." December 11, 2011 via Wikipedia. Public Domain Dedication.

1. Do the headings used in my project stand out and break up text clearly? Should other fonts or colors be used?

The headings in my project do stand out because they are bolded. Other colors are unnecessary because the rest of my text will be underneath each heading and not bolded. 

2. What color choices reflect the visual-rhetorical tone of my project?

Normal black text, white font will reflect the tone of my project. I am using logical arguments in an informal way, so a normal text would be appropriate. 

3. How might I vary the fonts used in my project for emphasis, such as in the title and body of my project?

I will vary between bold headings and subheadings to unbold text. Each body paragraph will have it's own subheading in order to outline my blog post for the reader. 

4. If your project contains large blocks of text, could they be broken up more efficiently using text boxes, lines, headings, or images? 

I will include a few images to break up the large bodies of text. Also, every paragraph will be broken up by subheadings to organize my argument. 

5. Do your eyes move easily from section to section in the order that you intended?

The reader will be able to easily move from section to section because of the subheadings included in the project. 

6. From your outline, is the visual-rhetorical tone of your project consistent? 

My visual-rhetorical tone is consistent because I am using a logical argument. Therefore, normal text and font types and colors will be acceptable to present my argument and the use of subheadings will allow the reader to logically follow my argument.

Project Three Outline

In the post below I will be creating an outline for project three.

Jan-Mallander. "Kittens." October, 2014 via Pixaby. Public Domain Dedication.

Introduction

Think About Your Situation 

• Talk about how GMOs affect everyone

• Talk about major breakthroughs with major seed companies like Monsanto

• Generally introduce topic

Body 


1. List Down Supporting Arguments

• The FDA wouldn't allow the production of GMOs if they were not safe

• Despite the production process, the actual product isn't technically unsafe

• New non-browning apples do not conceal GMO identity ==> not unknown to public

• No evidence to show harmful effects of consuming GMOs

• High-calorie, low-nutrient foods provide more harm; foods can cause food borne illnesses ==> could be potentially worse than GMOs ==> not one case of illness from GMOs in the last decades

• Traditional breeding techniques are more used than genetic modification so it's hard to say they will pose a threat

• Uses genes from native organism==> still natural 

• Technology produces "less surprises" because scientists can isolate one gene with genetic engineering rather than crossing multiple genes in traditional breeding==> able to understand gene and monitor how it will change 

2. List Down Major Criticisms

• Altering a single gene could cause toxins and allergens

• No evidence to prove they are safe

• Long term affects are subtle but cannot be linked to GMOs===> Alzheimers and cancers

• Hard to prove altered gene doesn't enter into human genome 

3. Select Your Key Support and Rebuttal Points
Support

• GMOs are not unknown ==> FDA would't allow unsafe products; identity is not unknown and practice has been around for years

• Sustainable farming

• No evidence to prove harmfulness ==> no studies shown; scale compared to selective breeding is too small to show harmful effects

• Still natural process; uses genes from native organisms; able to isolate, monitor and understand behavior of genes; more likely to be affected by unhealthy food or food-borne illnesses 

Rebuttal

• Although some cancers and diseases have been rumored to be caused by eating GMOs, there are still no tests or evidence to prove they are harmful

• Long term effects of illness cannot be directly related to GMOs

• Too many other factors involved

4. Write Out a Topic Sentence for Each Support and Rebuttal 
Support

• Regardless of labels, genetically modified organisms have been around for decades and their presence, composition and identity is not unknown to the public.

• Genetically modified organisms can also benefit our environment by creating sustainable farming and new means or agriculture. 

• There is still not enough evidence to prove harmful affects of consuming genetically modified organisms. 

• Regardless of the "unnatural" production, genetically modified products are still made of natural materials and can even be better for personal health compared to other food products.

Rebuttal

• Although some cancers and diseases have been rumored to be caused by eating GMOs, there are still no tests or evidence to prove they are harmful.

• Some may be skeptical about the effects of GMOs, however, long term illnesses cannot be directly related to the consumption of genetically modified organisms. 

• There are too many other factors involved in genetic composition and testing GMOs to officially prove they are harmful. 

5. Gather Evidence

• "The use of GM crops “has lowered the price of food,” Zilberman says. “It has increased farmer safety by allowing them to use less pesticide. It has raised the output of corn, cotton and soy by 20 to 30 percent, allowing some people to survive who would not have without it. If it were more widely adopted around the world, the price [of food] would go lower, and fewer people would die of hunger.” 

• "The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that the world will have to grow 70 percent more food by 2050 just to keep up with population growth. Climate change will make much of the world's arable land more difficult to farm. GM crops, Zilberman says, could produce higher yields, grow in dry and salty land, withstand high and low temperatures, and tolerate insects, disease and herbicides."

• The human race has been selectively breeding crops, thus altering plants' genomes, for millennia. Ordinary wheat has long been strictly a human-engineered plant; it could not exist outside of farms, because its seeds do not scatter.

• this precision makes the technology much less likely to produce surprises.

• Most plant molecular biologists also say that in the highly unlikely case that an unexpected health threat emerged from a new GM plant, scientists would quickly identify and eliminate it. 

• The bacterium B. thuringiensis, for example, which produces proteins fatal to insects, is sometimes enlisted as a natural pesticide in organic farming. 

• people have consumed as many as trillions of meals containing genetically modified ingredients over the past few decades. Not a single verified case of illness has ever been attributed to the genetic alterations.

• every single news-making food disaster on record has been attributed to non-GM crops

• The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, along with its counterparts in several other countries, has repeatedly reviewed large bodies of research and concluded that GM crops pose no unique health threats

• it is not true that the GM process is less likely to cause problems simply because fewer, more clearly identified genes are switched ===> a genome often continues to change in the successive generations after the insertion, leaving it with a different arrangement than the one intended and initially tested.

•  the research has not shown any evidence of harmful health effects resulting from the consumption of GMO foods, even after two decades of their presence in the food supply.

• The clean track record of GMO foods stands in contrast to the list of more urgent food-associated threats that we face: food-borne illnesses, which sicken more than 40 million people and cause several thousand deaths in the United States annually, and the enormous public health toll of poor diets dominated by highly processed, low-nutrient, high-calorie foods.

• These snippets trigger a natural cellular process called RNA interference

• Unlike the vast majority of GMOs on the market, Arctic Apples don't conceal their GMO identity from consumers.

• will offer foods that really are an improvement over non-GMO varieties, with healthier fats, more nutrients, or, like the potatoes already approved by the FDA, reduced levels of carcinogens.

6. Create a Map of Your Argument

A cluster map of my argument can be found here.

Conclusion

For my conclusion, I would do a call to action. I will explain to my readers why they shouldn't be scared of genetically modified organisms and that consuming them would not be bad. I will encourage them to accept the benefits along with genetic modification and how their acceptance will ease the debate for everyone. 

Reflection: 

Morgan's outline is different in mine in her evidence section. She is using personal stories as her support, whereas I am using outside information to support my argument. In addition, she is appealing more to emotion and I am appealing more to logic for my argument. She also is using the "future of debate" approach for her conclusion which should be the most effective for her topic. Isabel has a little different outline than my project as well. We are both using the "thinking about the situation" approach to introduce our topic. I feel as though this is the easier way to relate the reader with our topics. Isabel, just like Morgan, is using the future of debate approach to conclude her project. This is the best way to cause the reader to consider where this controversy could potentially lead.

Analyzing My Genre

In the post below, I will be providing examples to the genre I am writing in as well as answering questions to analyze my genre.

Scott Kveton. "Canada's Newest Corndog Spokesperson." July 23, 2008 via Flickr. Public Domain Dedication.

Example One
Example Two
Example Three
Example Four
Example Five

Social Context

1. Where is the genre typically set?

My genre is typically set in online magazines. Various blogs and articles about GMOs can generally be found on online magazines, like health magazines, parenting magazines and even news magazines. 

2. What is the subject of the genre?

The subject of my genre is an argument supporting genetically modified organisms and how they are not necessarily bad. In general, a blog is used to express feelings and opinions in an informal way, therefore the subject will change based on the author.

3. Who uses the genre?

People who like to informally blog use this genre as well as writers and journals.

4. What is the purpose of the genre? 

The purpose of this genre is to informally present an individual's point of view and practice his first amendment right. 

Rhetorical Patterns of the Genre 

1. What type of content is usually included and excluded?

In blogs, the views of the author are included in the content. Usually, the author will only provide evidence to support their viewpoints. In addition, visuals are usually included in blogs as well as hyperlinks to other sources relating to the content. 

2. What rhetorical appeals are used most often?

In blogs, the authors generally use pathos because they are expressing their feelings about a certain topic. Because it is an informal genre, the author does not need to appeal to credibility. Sometimes, the author will use a logical argument to present his or her view points.

3. How are the texts organized? Do they generally open in similar ways? Conclude in similar ways? What common parts do these samples share?

Blogs are usually organized by paragraphs or even subheadings. They all start with a short introduction about what the post will be about and always includes a relevant image. The examples above are organized into paragraphs and all include visuals within the article and blog. 

4. Do sentences share a similar style? Are they mostly passive, active, simple, or complex? Is there an abundance or lack of questions, exclamation points, or semicolons? 

The sentences are varied between simple and complex. Blogs are generally informal and must appeal to all readers; therefore, the sentence construction is not very complicated or lengthy. There usually are not very many questions or semicolons because that would be too formal for this genre. However, commas and various punctuation are used because it is an informal genre. 

5. What type of word choice is used? Do many of the words fit in a particular category of jargon or slang? Is the overall effect of the word choice formal, informal, humorous, or academic? 

Informal word choice is used; blogs are informal so there is no need for academic word choice. Blogs do not necessarily use slang, however, they are still informal and not very academic. 

Analyze What Those Patterns Reveal About the Social Context

1. Who does the genre include and who does it exclude?

My genre includes readers who care about health and wellness. My blog is targeted toward parents who have to provide food for their family. My genre would exclude anyone who does not read online blogs or people who do not care about genetically modified products. 

2. What roles for writers and readers does the genre encourage? 

My genre encourages writers to informally and freely express their views and opinions without having to have a lot of evidence and support. Blogs generally include more opinion than fact; because of this, it encourages readers to find out more evidence for themselves about certain topics as well as consider how they really feel about an issue. 

3. What values and beliefs are assumed about or encouraged from users of the genre? 

My genre encourages writers to completely explain their view. Blogs give writers the freedom to write what they feel and believe, regardless of the amount of evidence to support their views. Users of this genre are generally opinionated and curious about issues in our society. 

4. What content does the genre treat as most valuable? Least valuable? 

My genre treats personal opinion most valuable and places less value on facts and credibility. Blogs are mainly about a person's view and opinion and provide a domain to freely express his thoughts and views. 

Reflection:

Both Morgan and I are targeting parents for our projects. We are analyzing what parents should and shouldn't do for their kids. Also, we are both focusing on opinions and personal views gathering than using a lot of evidence and credible sources to support our arguments. Isabel's genre is very different than mine. She is using more logical rhetorical strategies and I am using more opinions and emotional appeals. Also, Isabel is using a more formal tone than I am. I like how she is using a specific audience and an educated approach to her project.