Here is a paragraph from a blog post I wrote last semester. I will see what type of sentence I use most and whether my grammar is correct.
1The main idea I came out with as I wrote was the idea that Mormon literacy and the Mormon idea of salvation are inextricably linked (SIMPLE). 2The more literate a person is in the doctrines of the church, the closer they are to achieving joy in this life and the next (COMPOUND SENTENCE). 3But I want to modify or at least shape this notion better than I have up to this point (SIMPLE OR SENTENCE FRAGMENT DEPENDING HOW YOU TAKE IT). 4I don’t want to convey that by merely studying the scriptures, knowing myriad details about the history of the church, memorizing long passages or any other superficial study of the church doctrines is expected (FAULTY CONSTRUCTION/SIMPLE). 5Belief in, knowledge of, and even a surety in the doctrines of the church do not qualify a person for salvation and exaltation (SIMPLE). 6True belief, knowledge and surety is expected to become a performance of consistent actions as well as partaking in ordinances such as baptism in which a person enters into covenant relationships with God that they will behave a certain way, and in return God will grant blessings (BAD VERB AGREEMENT/RUN ON, COMPOUND). 7James in the new testament urges the saints, “Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only.” (James 1.22)(SIMPLE). 8The true test of a Mormon’s literacy in the doctrines of the church is how closely their actions, words, and thoughts reflect the doctrines, not how well they know them (COMPLEX). 9An old cliche in the church goes like this, “what you do shows how you feel about what you know.”(SIMPLE) 10I hope no one reads this blog and thinks that all Mormons have to do to be saved is read the Book of Mormon (SIMPLE). 11Rather, the saving process happens as people more closely align themselves to the teachings in these sacred texts by acting in ways that reflect their understanding (BAD PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE/SIMPLE).
Out of 11 sentences, eight are simple, two are compound and one is complex. I mainly write in simple sentences (or at least I try to). I have a lot more mistakes in there than I thought I would; three sentences have a significant error. Some grammarians would see sentence three as a sentence fragment, but I made the stylistic choice to use but as a conjuctive adverb and not a subordinating conjunction. The error in sentence four would have been easily fixed if I had read back through the paragraph once. But the errors in 11 and six are trickier. Mainly I try to fit too much into one sentence. Maybe I should write more compound and complex sentences instead of trying to fit everything into my S-V-O default sentence structure.
Friday, January 28, 2011
Rude 11.4
These sentences contain restrictive or nonrestrictive clauses and have been punctuated correctly.
a. A Professional Broker is any person who is licensed by the Montana Savings and Loan Department. (restrictive, not everybody is licensed)
b. The photoconductive cells measure the amount of radiant energy and convert it to electrical energy that is then interpreted by the computer and displayed on the meter. (restrictive, not all energy is interpreted)
c. Present lab equipment allows pulse energy experiments, which require 300,000 kw or less of electric power. New equipment would increase the potential of the lab. (nonrestrictive, not limiting the experiments, just adding more information about them)
d. A high deer population that continuously feeds on the seedlings of a desired tree species can severely retard the propagation of that species. (restrictive, not all deer feed on that tree)
e. Pulse weldings can join many metals that are impossible to join by conventional welding methods. (restrictive, not all metals are impossible to join)
a. A Professional Broker is any person who is licensed by the Montana Savings and Loan Department. (restrictive, not everybody is licensed)
b. The photoconductive cells measure the amount of radiant energy and convert it to electrical energy that is then interpreted by the computer and displayed on the meter. (restrictive, not all energy is interpreted)
c. Present lab equipment allows pulse energy experiments, which require 300,000 kw or less of electric power. New equipment would increase the potential of the lab. (nonrestrictive, not limiting the experiments, just adding more information about them)
d. A high deer population that continuously feeds on the seedlings of a desired tree species can severely retard the propagation of that species. (restrictive, not all deer feed on that tree)
e. Pulse weldings can join many metals that are impossible to join by conventional welding methods. (restrictive, not all metals are impossible to join)
Williams 4.6
These sentence contain revised compound noun phrases (in italics).
1. The plant safety standards committee discussed recent announcements regarding air quality regulations.
2. A diabetic patient's blood pressure can be reduced by applying a renal depressor.
3. The goal of this article is to describe text comprehension processes and recall protocol production. (no changes)
4. On the basis of these principles, we may now attempt to formulate rules to extract narrative information.
5. This paper investigates the information processing behaviors involved in the simulation of human cognition in computers.
6. The Federal Trade Commission is responsible for enforcing guidelines concerning the durability of new automobile tires.
7. The Social Security program guarantees a floor for monthly income based on a schedule of lifelong contribution.
8. Based on assessment reviews of training needs and on visits to office sites, we identified concepts and issues we can use to create an initial staff questionnaire instrument.
1. The plant safety standards committee discussed recent announcements regarding air quality regulations.
2. A diabetic patient's blood pressure can be reduced by applying a renal depressor.
3. The goal of this article is to describe text comprehension processes and recall protocol production. (no changes)
4. On the basis of these principles, we may now attempt to formulate rules to extract narrative information.
5. This paper investigates the information processing behaviors involved in the simulation of human cognition in computers.
6. The Federal Trade Commission is responsible for enforcing guidelines concerning the durability of new automobile tires.
7. The Social Security program guarantees a floor for monthly income based on a schedule of lifelong contribution.
8. Based on assessment reviews of training needs and on visits to office sites, we identified concepts and issues we can use to create an initial staff questionnaire instrument.
Williams 4.4
These sentences have been changed from passive to active, or left passive for justified reasons. Changed verbs are in italics.
1. Your figures were analyzed to determine their accuracy. We will announce the results when appropriate. (This could be a note from department head to students who have taken a test)
2. Banks now make Home Mortgage loans for thirty years. With the price of housing at inflated levels, homeowners cannot pay off these loans in a shorter time.
3.The author abandoned his impassioned narrative and presented a cautious treatment of conspiracy theories. But when he picked up the narrative line again, he invested his prose with the same vigor and force.
4. Many arguments were advanced against Darwinian evolution in the nineteenth century because it challenged basic assumptions about our place in the world. Darwin's theory no longer defined humans as privileged creatures but rather as a product of natural forces.
5. For many years, the government has enforced federal regulations concerning wiretapping. Only recently have they imposed looser restrictions on warranting circumstances.
6. I believe an analysis of peer interaction among adolescents most clearly explains the social significance of smoking. In particular, studies should be made of the manner in which social class conditions interactive behavior.
7. We have written these directives in a simple style in an effort to communicate effectively with employees with limited reading skills.
8. Studies with little scientific reliability have caused researchers to undervalue the human brain's solution-creating abilities.
1. Your figures were analyzed to determine their accuracy. We will announce the results when appropriate. (This could be a note from department head to students who have taken a test)
2. Banks now make Home Mortgage loans for thirty years. With the price of housing at inflated levels, homeowners cannot pay off these loans in a shorter time.
3.The author abandoned his impassioned narrative and presented a cautious treatment of conspiracy theories. But when he picked up the narrative line again, he invested his prose with the same vigor and force.
4. Many arguments were advanced against Darwinian evolution in the nineteenth century because it challenged basic assumptions about our place in the world. Darwin's theory no longer defined humans as privileged creatures but rather as a product of natural forces.
5. For many years, the government has enforced federal regulations concerning wiretapping. Only recently have they imposed looser restrictions on warranting circumstances.
6. I believe an analysis of peer interaction among adolescents most clearly explains the social significance of smoking. In particular, studies should be made of the manner in which social class conditions interactive behavior.
7. We have written these directives in a simple style in an effort to communicate effectively with employees with limited reading skills.
8. Studies with little scientific reliability have caused researchers to undervalue the human brain's solution-creating abilities.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Rude Exercise 8.4 Corporate Style Guide
After a short Google search, I found the Erewash Borough Council style guide. Erewash Borough is an area in England near Derbyshire about twice the size of Manhattan island with 110 thousand people in it. Their style guide is 14 pages long and includes 14 sections: Corporate Identity, Corporate font/text styles, Stationary, Advertising, Signage, Vehicles, Clothing, Website, Publications, Photography and Illustrations, Photocopying and printing publications in-house, Alternative Formats, Typestyle, and Brief Plain English Guide.
The majority of the document is meant to remind employees that the documents they produce "are also a reflection of the type of organisation we are and that which we aspire to be." And that they "need to adopt a consistent approach to the production of all documents, whether they are
intended for internal or external use."
The document also emphasizes the necessity of the government employees to be aware of international audience for whom English may not be their first language.
The Brief Plain English Guide and Website sections contain the majority of style points, for example: "Write one to ten in words. From 11, use the number. For large numbers, use commas, for example, 1,000 not 1000." Also included is the slightly humorous rule, "Don’t use capital letters for headings – it looks like you are shouting." And evidence of one of the writer's pet peeves, "Never, ever use ‘click here.’" Many of the guidelines are not detailed such as "Watch image sizes" and "Use everyday English that people can understand." While some, alongside the use of Arial 12 point font for every document, are very specific: "Avoid Latin, as some people won’t know what it means. Use: ‘for example’, instead of ‘eg’, ‘that is’, instead of ‘ie’, ‘and so on’, instead of ‘etc’."
The majority of the document is meant to remind employees that the documents they produce "are also a reflection of the type of organisation we are and that which we aspire to be." And that they "need to adopt a consistent approach to the production of all documents, whether they are
intended for internal or external use."
The document also emphasizes the necessity of the government employees to be aware of international audience for whom English may not be their first language.
The Brief Plain English Guide and Website sections contain the majority of style points, for example: "Write one to ten in words. From 11, use the number. For large numbers, use commas, for example, 1,000 not 1000." Also included is the slightly humorous rule, "Don’t use capital letters for headings – it looks like you are shouting." And evidence of one of the writer's pet peeves, "Never, ever use ‘click here.’" Many of the guidelines are not detailed such as "Watch image sizes" and "Use everyday English that people can understand." While some, alongside the use of Arial 12 point font for every document, are very specific: "Avoid Latin, as some people won’t know what it means. Use: ‘for example’, instead of ‘eg’, ‘that is’, instead of ‘ie’, ‘and so on’, instead of ‘etc’."
Rude Exercise 1.1
I searched Monster.com for positions as a technical editor, and I found thirteen job postings for the last month. What suprised me most was the variation in duties that people categorize under "technical editor." Some job descriptions included the production of content, others were adminstators, others were to keep track of when documents were distributed and received, and some were meant to only proofread and ensure consistency. Some were for textbooks and training materials, other were for web only content. Many of the jobs were discipline specific, such as for an aerospace engineering company and another technical design firm. I also noticed the word design was used a lot. I didn't find any specific salaries mentioned; most just said they offered competitive salaries and 401k plans. These jobs were located all throughout the country, but there seemed to be a lot from Virginia.
Monday, January 17, 2011
Williams Exercise 3.7
1. The use of models in teaching prose style does not result in improvements of clarity and directness in student writing.
Correction:Using models to teach prose style does not clarify student writing or make it more direct.
2. Precision in plotting the location of building foundations enhances the possibility of its accurate reconstruction.
Correction:When designers precisely plot building foundations, builders can accurately reconstruct them.
3. Any departures by the members from established procedures may cause the termination of membership by the board.
Correction: The board may terminate any member who departs from established procedures.
4. A student's lack of socialization into a field may lead to writing problems because of his insufficient understanding about arguments by professionals in that field.
Correction: Students with little experience reading and dealing with arguments in their field may have problems writing similar arguments.
5. The successful implementation of a new curriculum depends on the cooperation of faculty with students in setting achievable goals within a reasonable time.
Correction: To implement a new curriculum successfully, faculty and students must set achievable goals within a reasonable time.
Correction:Using models to teach prose style does not clarify student writing or make it more direct.
2. Precision in plotting the location of building foundations enhances the possibility of its accurate reconstruction.
Correction:When designers precisely plot building foundations, builders can accurately reconstruct them.
3. Any departures by the members from established procedures may cause the termination of membership by the board.
Correction: The board may terminate any member who departs from established procedures.
4. A student's lack of socialization into a field may lead to writing problems because of his insufficient understanding about arguments by professionals in that field.
Correction: Students with little experience reading and dealing with arguments in their field may have problems writing similar arguments.
5. The successful implementation of a new curriculum depends on the cooperation of faculty with students in setting achievable goals within a reasonable time.
Correction: To implement a new curriculum successfully, faculty and students must set achievable goals within a reasonable time.
Williams Exercise 3.6
1. Lincoln's hope was for the preservation of the Union without war, but the South's attack on Fort Sumter made war an inevitability.
Correction: Lincoln hoped to preserve the union without war, but after the South attacked Fort Sumter, war became inevitable.
2. Attempts were made on the part of the president's aides to assert his immunity from a congressional subpoena.
Correction: When Congress subpoenaed the president, the president's aides attempted to assert his immunity.
3. There were predictions by business executives that the economy would experience a quick revival.
Correction: Business executives predicted the economy would revive quickly.
4. Your analysis of my report omits any data in support of your criticism of my findings.
Correction: When you criticized my report, you did not support your analysis with data.
5. The health care industry's inability to exert cost controls could lead to the public's decision that congressional action is needed.
Correction: If the health care industry does not control costs, the public will demand that congress act.
Correction: Lincoln hoped to preserve the union without war, but after the South attacked Fort Sumter, war became inevitable.
2. Attempts were made on the part of the president's aides to assert his immunity from a congressional subpoena.
Correction: When Congress subpoenaed the president, the president's aides attempted to assert his immunity.
3. There were predictions by business executives that the economy would experience a quick revival.
Correction: Business executives predicted the economy would revive quickly.
4. Your analysis of my report omits any data in support of your criticism of my findings.
Correction: When you criticized my report, you did not support your analysis with data.
5. The health care industry's inability to exert cost controls could lead to the public's decision that congressional action is needed.
Correction: If the health care industry does not control costs, the public will demand that congress act.
24-hour Technology Fast
I woke to my wife mixing up some whole wheat pancake batter and getting a small fondue warmer ready to make me some breakfast.
"You're so lucky I love you," she said.
I didn't expect her support for the day, but I was glad to have it.
My first reaction was to go for my camera to take a picture. Then I realized I couldn't capture this moment. No one would ever be able to see our makeshift little stove in our dining room. I knew the day was going to be hard.
I had told my wife about my decision to go without electricity as much as I could the day before; I had thought I'd just eat raw food all day, along with keeping the lights off, not turning on the computer and unplugging all the clocks. I did leave the heat on because I have two little kids, and I left the fridge plugged in, because I'm too lazy to take all the food out and into coolers for one day (so much for total immersion).
I sat at the table, which now looked like a camping unit, and my wife poured the first pancake. After three minutes she tried to flip it, but the heat wasn't quite enough. The batter smeared off the spatula and made a big mess across the skillet. It took a full five minutes before it was cooked.
"I'll make the next one smaller," she said.
The kids were not handling the wait well. My three-year-old kept calling the next pancake when it was meant for someone else. After thirty-five minutes, we had eaten what would've normally taken six at the most, and I was still hungry. I cut up an apple and dipped it in some peanut butter and shared some with my boys. Lesson learned: electricity makes it possible to prepare a lot of food very quickly. Without it, eating, a thrice daily necessity, takes up a lot more time.
Normally at this time, my wife and I would put a movie on for the kids and go upstairs to take a shower, which was now not an option. On top of that, I wasn't sure if the water was heated with electricity or not. So I just didn't shower.
My wife went to book club and left me with the kids. Lesson learned: Children and electricity go very well together; and I am a bad parent. Movies and video games make handling kids for long stretches of time quite easy. They don't move around very much and therefore don't break/wreck/topple/burn/maim things when they are watching a screen. I can only push a toy train around a track so many times before I need something else to do, and keeping track of where two children are while simultaneously trying to pay attention to one of them enough that he doesn't constantly call out your name is not easy. But we had fun. I built a very good looking figure-8 track and Elliot was quite impressed with it.
One benefit to not relying on TV as a babysitter was that putting the children down for a nap was much easier. Actually playing takes a lot of energy, and neither kid complained much as I put them in bed.
Dealing with no lights during the day wasn't a problem. I kept candles and a lighter in the bathroom. I'll tell you, "going" by candlelight is soothing, but it made it hard to read my Outside Magazine.
With the kids in bed, I undertook my big challenge of the day, washing all the dishes by hand. We had been lazy for a few days and also made some big meals, so there was quite a pile that needed scrubbing. We have a single sink, so figuring out how to wash and rinse was tricky. Again, I had the unrequited urge to snap a photo of the huge line of dishes drip drying on every inch of available counter top. Sigh. In the end, I am sure that the dishes weren't as clean as they are after coming out of the dishwasher. Lesson learned: after wrinkling up my fingers for an hour cleaning out cups, I thought twice about grabbing a new cup when I had only drank water out of the last one.
One of the biggest things I noticed about life with no technology is that everything is slow and boring. Perhaps the whiplash of relative slowness gave me something akin to jetlag; I ended up sleeping a lot of the day. My wife and I went to bed at 9:30. Usually, doing the dishes takes me at most ten minutes (actually it takes me no time at all because my wife usually does them, but still). With no dishwasher, it took a full hour and a half. Without technology, our lives would be one long chain of tasks that only take care of ourselves, making food, cleaning up afterward, getting water, disposing of waste, etc. After all that, I wouldn't have time to bother with things like blogging and tweeting and facebooking and learning and entertaining myself. Or maybe I would, but I'd have to have reserves of energy I don't have right now.
Also, about going to bed at 9:30, it really made me wonder how often my body is crying out for me to go sleep, but I can't hear it because I'm too busy watching the Biggest Loser or hitting the refresh button.
The biggest thought provoker for me from this whole experiment was the idea of the importance of a moment. What did I lose by not getting a picture of the impromptu stove, or the line of dishes? Who misses out when I don't update my facebook status with interesting insights I get? If I don't record a memory, what's it worth? If I'm the only one that felt it, is that enough? I feel lucky that I get to blog about this, and to be honest, I was writing this blog entry all throughout my fast, knowing that at the end I was going to be able to publish my thoughts here. But what if I didn't have that opportunity? Would the world be in any way affected if I didn't write this post?
I think technology helps distract us from facing these existential crisis moments because we can constantly confirm the importance of moments in our lives through social networking. More than once during this experiment I have felt utterly alone. I tried to imagine writing a letter to someone as the only means of communicating my deepest fears and feelings, knowing that it could be weeks before I got a response, and I can't describe the mind-numbing horror I felt. How did generations before us make it through the day with their brains turned on?
I couldn't do it. In fact, I failed a lot during my one day. We tried to just be in the dark after the sun went down, but then we used flash lights, justifying that they were what we'd have to use if the power went out. Eventually we gave up and just flipped the light switches. I ended up heating up yesterday's mac and cheese in the oven because I didn't want to eat it cold. My wife and I went running and had to use the car because we run around Boomer Lake and couldn't figure out a simple way to run 6 miles from our door step without using the internet. When we came back from running, Natasha asked if it was OK to start a movie for the kids while we showered and I told her that I was just going to plug my ears and she could do what she wanted.
We are pampered. We are coddled. If our electricity were to go out one day, we would be completely and utterly screwed.
But as of right now, I really like being connected to other people instantaneously. I really like having a superhuman memory through my computer prostheses. I love knowing that in a few keystrokes, someone can be aware of me and my thoughts.
I am a cyborg, and I'm okay with it.
"You're so lucky I love you," she said.
I didn't expect her support for the day, but I was glad to have it.
My first reaction was to go for my camera to take a picture. Then I realized I couldn't capture this moment. No one would ever be able to see our makeshift little stove in our dining room. I knew the day was going to be hard.
I had told my wife about my decision to go without electricity as much as I could the day before; I had thought I'd just eat raw food all day, along with keeping the lights off, not turning on the computer and unplugging all the clocks. I did leave the heat on because I have two little kids, and I left the fridge plugged in, because I'm too lazy to take all the food out and into coolers for one day (so much for total immersion).
I sat at the table, which now looked like a camping unit, and my wife poured the first pancake. After three minutes she tried to flip it, but the heat wasn't quite enough. The batter smeared off the spatula and made a big mess across the skillet. It took a full five minutes before it was cooked.
"I'll make the next one smaller," she said.
The kids were not handling the wait well. My three-year-old kept calling the next pancake when it was meant for someone else. After thirty-five minutes, we had eaten what would've normally taken six at the most, and I was still hungry. I cut up an apple and dipped it in some peanut butter and shared some with my boys. Lesson learned: electricity makes it possible to prepare a lot of food very quickly. Without it, eating, a thrice daily necessity, takes up a lot more time.
Normally at this time, my wife and I would put a movie on for the kids and go upstairs to take a shower, which was now not an option. On top of that, I wasn't sure if the water was heated with electricity or not. So I just didn't shower.
My wife went to book club and left me with the kids. Lesson learned: Children and electricity go very well together; and I am a bad parent. Movies and video games make handling kids for long stretches of time quite easy. They don't move around very much and therefore don't break/wreck/topple/burn/maim things when they are watching a screen. I can only push a toy train around a track so many times before I need something else to do, and keeping track of where two children are while simultaneously trying to pay attention to one of them enough that he doesn't constantly call out your name is not easy. But we had fun. I built a very good looking figure-8 track and Elliot was quite impressed with it.
One benefit to not relying on TV as a babysitter was that putting the children down for a nap was much easier. Actually playing takes a lot of energy, and neither kid complained much as I put them in bed.
Dealing with no lights during the day wasn't a problem. I kept candles and a lighter in the bathroom. I'll tell you, "going" by candlelight is soothing, but it made it hard to read my Outside Magazine.
With the kids in bed, I undertook my big challenge of the day, washing all the dishes by hand. We had been lazy for a few days and also made some big meals, so there was quite a pile that needed scrubbing. We have a single sink, so figuring out how to wash and rinse was tricky. Again, I had the unrequited urge to snap a photo of the huge line of dishes drip drying on every inch of available counter top. Sigh. In the end, I am sure that the dishes weren't as clean as they are after coming out of the dishwasher. Lesson learned: after wrinkling up my fingers for an hour cleaning out cups, I thought twice about grabbing a new cup when I had only drank water out of the last one.
One of the biggest things I noticed about life with no technology is that everything is slow and boring. Perhaps the whiplash of relative slowness gave me something akin to jetlag; I ended up sleeping a lot of the day. My wife and I went to bed at 9:30. Usually, doing the dishes takes me at most ten minutes (actually it takes me no time at all because my wife usually does them, but still). With no dishwasher, it took a full hour and a half. Without technology, our lives would be one long chain of tasks that only take care of ourselves, making food, cleaning up afterward, getting water, disposing of waste, etc. After all that, I wouldn't have time to bother with things like blogging and tweeting and facebooking and learning and entertaining myself. Or maybe I would, but I'd have to have reserves of energy I don't have right now.
Also, about going to bed at 9:30, it really made me wonder how often my body is crying out for me to go sleep, but I can't hear it because I'm too busy watching the Biggest Loser or hitting the refresh button.
The biggest thought provoker for me from this whole experiment was the idea of the importance of a moment. What did I lose by not getting a picture of the impromptu stove, or the line of dishes? Who misses out when I don't update my facebook status with interesting insights I get? If I don't record a memory, what's it worth? If I'm the only one that felt it, is that enough? I feel lucky that I get to blog about this, and to be honest, I was writing this blog entry all throughout my fast, knowing that at the end I was going to be able to publish my thoughts here. But what if I didn't have that opportunity? Would the world be in any way affected if I didn't write this post?
I think technology helps distract us from facing these existential crisis moments because we can constantly confirm the importance of moments in our lives through social networking. More than once during this experiment I have felt utterly alone. I tried to imagine writing a letter to someone as the only means of communicating my deepest fears and feelings, knowing that it could be weeks before I got a response, and I can't describe the mind-numbing horror I felt. How did generations before us make it through the day with their brains turned on?
I couldn't do it. In fact, I failed a lot during my one day. We tried to just be in the dark after the sun went down, but then we used flash lights, justifying that they were what we'd have to use if the power went out. Eventually we gave up and just flipped the light switches. I ended up heating up yesterday's mac and cheese in the oven because I didn't want to eat it cold. My wife and I went running and had to use the car because we run around Boomer Lake and couldn't figure out a simple way to run 6 miles from our door step without using the internet. When we came back from running, Natasha asked if it was OK to start a movie for the kids while we showered and I told her that I was just going to plug my ears and she could do what she wanted.
We are pampered. We are coddled. If our electricity were to go out one day, we would be completely and utterly screwed.
But as of right now, I really like being connected to other people instantaneously. I really like having a superhuman memory through my computer prostheses. I love knowing that in a few keystrokes, someone can be aware of me and my thoughts.
I am a cyborg, and I'm okay with it.
Friday, January 14, 2011
Facebook/iPhone Fast Day 2
So far I have come to this conclusion: my iPhone makes me a better person.
Since I've been without it for a full day now, I feel myself regressing into a more earlier version of myself. I have a very bad short term memory. If I don't act on a thought, idea or impulse immediately I lose it and never get it back. With apps like Evernote, the Calendar app, voice memos, Twitter and Facebook, and a quality camera constantly with me, I have all the tools necessary to "remember" every important or interesting thought or idea I have.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that I've come to rely on the iPhone to remember stuff for me. I'm saying that I never had the ability to do it, and my iPhone has become a memory or brain prosthesis to help me overcome my disability. Yesterday, when I had an interesting thought, I would pat at my pockets for my phone, realize it wasn't there, realize that my idea was going to fade away in a few seconds and that if I didn't get it down soon I'd forget it, and then give up. Once yesterday I had a good spiritual insight about something I read in the bible and walked quickly to a computer repeating the thought over and over in my mind the way a person says a phone number over and over before they write it down. But I don't have the energy to do that with everything.
So, so far, I've decided that my iPhone isn't just a cool gadget with fun games I can dink around on in the waiting room, even though it is that. It has become a functioning extension of my brain that I trust more than my own memory. Without, I lose valuable insights and become demoralized at even coming up with smart things in the first place.
Since I've been without it for a full day now, I feel myself regressing into a more earlier version of myself. I have a very bad short term memory. If I don't act on a thought, idea or impulse immediately I lose it and never get it back. With apps like Evernote, the Calendar app, voice memos, Twitter and Facebook, and a quality camera constantly with me, I have all the tools necessary to "remember" every important or interesting thought or idea I have.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that I've come to rely on the iPhone to remember stuff for me. I'm saying that I never had the ability to do it, and my iPhone has become a memory or brain prosthesis to help me overcome my disability. Yesterday, when I had an interesting thought, I would pat at my pockets for my phone, realize it wasn't there, realize that my idea was going to fade away in a few seconds and that if I didn't get it down soon I'd forget it, and then give up. Once yesterday I had a good spiritual insight about something I read in the bible and walked quickly to a computer repeating the thought over and over in my mind the way a person says a phone number over and over before they write it down. But I don't have the energy to do that with everything.
So, so far, I've decided that my iPhone isn't just a cool gadget with fun games I can dink around on in the waiting room, even though it is that. It has become a functioning extension of my brain that I trust more than my own memory. Without, I lose valuable insights and become demoralized at even coming up with smart things in the first place.
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Showing Promise for Project 2
I talked to Lynn Lewis today about helping her edit her book. She said someone else already has it, but she probably has something else that I can look at. She said it'll probably be more than 25 pages (the max outlined in the assignment sheet), but that'll be all right. So that's taken care of.
I challenged my Comp 2 students to go without an important technology for one week, and to go a full 24 hours without any technology, and I plan to do it with them. Starting tomorrow I will not use Facebook or my iPhone, and next saturday my family and I will go without technology as much as possible, no computer, no lights, I'll take a cold shower, and I'm going to either eat raw foods or figure out a way to cook it without electricity. (One of the main points of the experiment is to discover the astonishing ubiquity of technology, and so I know going without technology is impossible.) So I am looking forward to that.
Random pictures:
Oh yeah, and this is going to be extra hard because I am just really starting to get into the habit of recording my thoughts in Evernote on my phone. I'm going to have to carry around a notebook and then retype my notes into Evernote. I am kind of afraid that I'll get out of a notetaking habit, but we'll see.
I challenged my Comp 2 students to go without an important technology for one week, and to go a full 24 hours without any technology, and I plan to do it with them. Starting tomorrow I will not use Facebook or my iPhone, and next saturday my family and I will go without technology as much as possible, no computer, no lights, I'll take a cold shower, and I'm going to either eat raw foods or figure out a way to cook it without electricity. (One of the main points of the experiment is to discover the astonishing ubiquity of technology, and so I know going without technology is impossible.) So I am looking forward to that.
Random pictures:
Oh yeah, and this is going to be extra hard because I am just really starting to get into the habit of recording my thoughts in Evernote on my phone. I'm going to have to carry around a notebook and then retype my notes into Evernote. I am kind of afraid that I'll get out of a notetaking habit, but we'll see.
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
First Post
This will be the most casual blog ever. If you end up having the misfortune of stumbling upon it, I apologize for it's lack of coherence. Prepare to be non-sequitured.
I will use this blog to fulfill assignments for and write about my Technical Editing class at Oklahoma State University.
Here is a picture I took today.
Today in class I realized that I have a lot more editing experience and know-how than I gave myself credit for. I was the news editor for two semesters and a photo editor for three semesters at my undergrad and graduate school newspapers. I used to build newspaper pages. For one of my capstone projects for my undergrad English degree I designed, edited, laid out, facilitated, etc. a magazine called "Prescribe" in which my classmates wrote personal narratives and the things they learned from their experiences. I also spend a lot of time on photography, typography, design, and photoshop blogs and tutorial sites in my free time. I am proficient in Photoshop, InDesign, Word, Pages, Powerpoint, etc. and I can use Illustrator ok. I took a Visual Media design class and created a professional portfolio in which I designed a brochure, a flyer, and a business card and letterhead for a company I made up. I am a photographer of the prosumer level (people pay me to take family portraits sometimes).
Oh and I've got an idea for my big project. For class we have to edit a real person's work. I'm not a people person, and this seems like it could be daunting. However, a professor from whom I have taken a few classes is currently working on a book about internet memes and looking at them throught the Bakhtinian idea of time (or something like that), and I thought maybe she might let me edit a chapter from her book. I'll contact her tomorrow and see if that is going to happen.
So I think I'll be all right in this class. I get giddy discussing kerning, and using two different serifed fonts in one document makes my skin crawl. It should be a lot of fun.
I will use this blog to fulfill assignments for and write about my Technical Editing class at Oklahoma State University.
Here is a picture I took today.
Today in class I realized that I have a lot more editing experience and know-how than I gave myself credit for. I was the news editor for two semesters and a photo editor for three semesters at my undergrad and graduate school newspapers. I used to build newspaper pages. For one of my capstone projects for my undergrad English degree I designed, edited, laid out, facilitated, etc. a magazine called "Prescribe" in which my classmates wrote personal narratives and the things they learned from their experiences. I also spend a lot of time on photography, typography, design, and photoshop blogs and tutorial sites in my free time. I am proficient in Photoshop, InDesign, Word, Pages, Powerpoint, etc. and I can use Illustrator ok. I took a Visual Media design class and created a professional portfolio in which I designed a brochure, a flyer, and a business card and letterhead for a company I made up. I am a photographer of the prosumer level (people pay me to take family portraits sometimes).
Oh and I've got an idea for my big project. For class we have to edit a real person's work. I'm not a people person, and this seems like it could be daunting. However, a professor from whom I have taken a few classes is currently working on a book about internet memes and looking at them throught the Bakhtinian idea of time (or something like that), and I thought maybe she might let me edit a chapter from her book. I'll contact her tomorrow and see if that is going to happen.
So I think I'll be all right in this class. I get giddy discussing kerning, and using two different serifed fonts in one document makes my skin crawl. It should be a lot of fun.
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