Peer Review Reflection

At first I thought my essay was not up to par and needed a lot of work, but the two students who reviewed the essay left very positive compliments and other great ways to improve on the paper. The structure could use a few more paragraphs defending the thesis but I was told that I am moving in a good direction. The essay really just needs to be reorganized and a few more ideas need to be added in order to tie the whole essay together.

Constructing a Questionaire

How much do you think television networks like nbc, fox, and abc infuence American society?
Is it profitable for television networks to spend so much for large NFL contracts? Why?
Do you think a shift from basic channels to cable channels will affect the viewership of the games?
How much does the average televeision station cost to remain keep up the day to day tasks of bringing viewers their daily entertainment?

Open-ended Process

The injuries which occur in football are a very serious matter for the players involved in the game. These players must try to achieve success in the midst of so much unruly play. Often players try to make hit on each other which will place them in the minds of many, but this comes at risk of injuring a fellow player. These tactics to take a person out of a game are not sportsman like but it is what football has come to. Often players are taught to hit the opposing player as hard as humanly possible in order to get the ball from the opposing players. This eventually causes major injuries like concussions and other possible season ending injuries.
The intensity of play is not what is wrong with the sport instead the intent of most of the players is very troubling. Many players try to take the opposing player out of the game in order to create an advantage or simply crush the player when the opportunity comes. These acts are what make the game so dangerous.

Do Parents Matter Reponse

Throughout this essay Gladwell was able to use some what credible sources. There was a good use of citation throughout the essay including his reference to Judith Rich Harris's explanation of the relation between children and their family explaining how "adolescents aren't trying to be like adults, they are trying to contrast themselves with adults". Gladwell is also able to bring many sources into his essay but at the same time they are not completely defined. In one area he defines his source as "a series of careful and comprehensive studies behavioral geneticists have concluded", which at a glance seems to be credible but he never actually defines what group specifically. This leaves him with a lot of room to use the information as he pleases making his work not too credible.
As a whole the piece was very intriguing because of the way it challenged modern beliefs of personality traits and how they are acquired. I have always believed that ones personality come from his interaction with their parents or siblings. This idea is visible even within my family, because many times I have realized that both of my parents resemble their parents in the way they go about certain tasks and believe the house should be run. My father is very reserved but can be very stern and straight forward when it comes to day to day tasks. My mother on the other hand likes to be open about her day to day events no matter good or bad. While growing up I began to see similarities with the way my grandparents acted.
In all the idea of a completely horizontal or vertical style of acquiring ones personality cannot be completely true. There has to be a mix of the two. Children form a general idea of how they are suppose to act and their moral background from their parents. Other characteristics like their level of humor and ability to reach out to others depends on their interaction with their peers.

Pt. 2
McKeag, Dougalas B. "Football Players Need Several Days to Recover From a Concussion."Neuroskills.com. Centre for neuro skills, 5 Sept. 2002. Web. 1 Mar. 2010.
This site would be very helpful for my research paper. It takes a major injury which I am trying to fo.
cus on and helps to explain the effects and problems that result from the injury. The article explains in detail what a patient needs to do if they suffer from a concussion.

"Saints and Colts Injury Report." Nfl.com. Ed. Greg Downing. NFL, 7 Feb. 2010. Web. 1 Mar. 2010.
This reference seems to be very legitmate considering it is based on a site with that takes a lot of effort to put forth correct information. This was found on the official organizations website. It could be very helpful to my research because it gives a detailed analysis of injuries on both teams. This data gives me an idea about what type of injuries are occurring and how often they are occurring.

Michael, Edgar. "Tackling Rugby Injuries." Wesclark.com. The Lancet, 10 July 1995. Web. 2 Mar. 2010.

This site is very helpful because it explains the different types of injuries that occur when players come into contact during a tackle. The article helps to explain the popularity and how athletes need to stay in the game longer by avoiding dangerous tackles.

Response to "Java Man"

Malcolm Gladwell's description of the progression of caffeine in western culture helps to portray its effect on the cultures in the world. By starting of and describing the way Coca-Cola was started Gladwell was able to grab my attention because it is a topic I am familiar with. Gladwell went on to tell of the "commercial artist named Haddon Sundblom" and the scheme he used to put Coke in the limelight created "caffeine for children" which finally placed Coke in the homes of Americans and made it a household item.

Other interesting connections between caffeine and society occurred when cafes would bring "thinker's" together to drink and eventually discuss many different social and political occurrences. A very significant cafe which was of interest to me was the cafe de la regence, where many of the individuals we study today including Robespierre, Napoleon, and Voltaire just to name a few would lounge about and discuss different topics. This all resulted from caffeine and its inclusion in the types of drink which people had for leisure.

Instead of merely stating the facts about caffeine and using sources to prove these facts, he takes an entirely different and intriguing background study to tie the paper together. On the other hand the argument seems to place too much responsibility in the hands of an object as simple as coffee. The stimulant is used to wake up those who are tired and are struggling through their day but it in no way brings out the intellect of individuals. The many people who were brought up in the essay were of great importance because their ability to problem solve and give individuals an option to the ways which society had set up for them. The reason for their success was because times had changed and coffee and other caffeine products acted a s a great substitute for the alcohol which was so popular.

Explore Research Question

I want to explore the contracts which tv networks dealing with the NFL have to work with and why the games are appearing on cable and satellite channels instead of local channels. The idea to appear on cable channels like espn and nfl network creates limited viewing but others might argue that the NFL will compromise its viewership for the amount of revenue. The NFL should be shown on local channels like nbc, abc, fox, and cbs, instead of espn and nfl network.

I know very general information about the networks and the contracts which they have with the NFL but i do not know the extent to which these contracts control the what channels show the games.

Response to "Brain Candy"

I agree with the idea that different media today like tv and video games have become more complex to the point where the viewer must use outside information in order to fully understand the references and problems which are presented. These subtle parodies like "Kennedy's assassination conspiracists" in Seinfeld ask the viewer to be familiar with allusions to certain societal occurrences past and present. Video games are also pushing the level of our imagination and problem solving skills everyday while attempting to test our coordination.

I disagree with Johnson in his mention of how the video games are social tools, because unless they are played with a group of friends they are very isolating similar to reading a book. Though video games allow you to explore there is typically a general direction that one must follow in order to successfully complete a task. This exploration generally leaves the player with one primary way of accessing a certain area or level which is similar to reading a book.

My argument does not need to be changed so much, but the organization of my supporting paragraphs needs some work. My first two paragraphs lack a concise flow but my third paragraph contains a very organized set of solutions to the problem which i have made apparent in my thesis. Gladwell's form of citing his sourcing can be very helpful in my essay to create a better sense of validity.