Entry #5 Local Story Respond

ASU

  After reading this article: 

http://archive.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2011/02/22/20110222arizona-state-university-shorter-classes.html

 I can see both the positive and negative sides of shorter classes being offered at ASU.

 As listed in the article the positive side include to give students more scheduling flexibility, financial savings, as well as drawling more students to the university.
 The negative side include mixed reviews from the faculty at ASU, others worry that the accelerated format won't give much time for actual learning.

 I personally feel as if the stress and short amount of time offered in the short classes would make the students go insane.

Yet I do agree. I think these classes should be offered. It does not mean all students must take them but the fact that they are offered give students options. 

  At the end of the article Jason Reynold's says, "I think it's good they are offering it..everyone is different". I completely agree with this. The classes should defiantly be an option, but not mandatory. 

What do you think of these accelerated classes? Would you take them? Do you think students would actually have time to learn things or would be working to finish the work and get the credit? Comment your thoughts below and as always thanks for reading my blog entry! 

Entry #4 (Self-generated)

Is Love Only Chemicals?

A very interesting topic that has been clouding my mind is the research of the mind and personality when it comes to "love". Many research studies have shown that the concept of love comes mainly from the chemicals in the brain. The chemical is called Dopamine. This chemical makes someone feel happy or excited. In the early stages of a romantic relationship dopamine is usually the most noticeable chemical active in the brain. It floods the brain in a matter described as fireworks. 

 Attraction happens often in life, but once you get attached to the person the brain then starts to get addicted to the dopamine that floods in. 

Once you have "fallen" for your significant other, your brain becomes more relaxed and starts to control the doses of dopamine. 

After attraction and connection, the brain starts to release oxytocin. Oxytocin is shown to be key to fostering trust and commitment. This is released into our brains during times of intimacy, such as when mothers breastfeed their babies or an orgasm during sex. Unlike dopamine, oxytocin is more subtle and sticks around longer, leaving a deeper attachment with your significant other.

This is ultimately why relationships are unable to last a lifetime. The reason for cheating and divorce isn't because couples just became unhappy, it is because the chemicals in their brains became overused and either stopped producing or became numb. Lastly, I found that the stages after a harsh breakup can even physically pain you. While it's all not real physical pain, the emotional pain you are overwhelmed with in your brain causes your brain to make it feel like physical pain. Research has shown that while it can be hard to recall how much something hurt a year ago physically, for example scrape on the knee, emotional pain can be recalled and re-experienced for a long time. 

What do you think about these studies and the chemicals that activate in the brain during intimacy? Do you believe physical pain is worse than emotional? Comment your thoughts below and thanks for reading my blog! 

Entry #3 Slanted Reporting Quest

Slanted Reporting All Over the Internet!

  An unavoidable thing every person comes across once in their internet driven life is slanted reporting. First, what is slanted reporting? It is when something is done in a way that gives more attention or support (bias) to a particular person, group, or idea.

  For example the case where Ann Coulter is caught red handed giving false statistics, bias opinions, and non-credible resources.

  As seen in the YouTube video Ann Coulter is giving resources from her book that were obviously bias resources to support her accusations and claims. This may be your reaction after the video:

  But think, when people try to back up their facts and statistics using other resources, usually these resources also were based on other resources, in a never ending continuum. So Ann Coulter was not necessarily wrong by using the resources she did, it was just the fact that her resources were not reliable. Therefore this makes Ann Coulter's book unreliable. So if anyone uses Ann Coulter's book as a resource they would need to be very picky in the parts they used, if any, and check her citations carefully.

  What do you think about Ann Coulter's resources and statistics? Have you recognized slanted reporting on the internet before? Feel free to comment below some of the things you have seen. As always, thanks for reading my blog!

Entry #2 (Self-generated)

Success

  Along with the research of blogging I find myself constantly trying to figure out the formula to success. How to obtain a successful blog, how to maintain a successful blog, and how to direct success into other areas of life. I find that many people take success and separate it into two different subjects which are usually money and happiness.

  Most people claim money brings no happiness therefore should be in a separate category, others say only those who don't have money would say that. I find many books, articles, and blogs focus on steps to earning money to gain success. Rarely any sources talk about how to successfully live a happy life. 

Once again thanks for reading another one of my blog posts! Please feel free to comment your opinion on which you think is the right road to success, money or happiness?

Entry#1 Learning About Blogs

Lets Discuss!

 To take the first step into becoming a great blogger, I decided that some research on successful blogs would be a good stepping stone.

  I started by reviewing the popular blog http://lifehacker.com/ . Upon visiting this blog I found myself starting to feel like I was reviewing a coupon book. Most of the blogs were on great deals or articles on ways to make life less difficult.
  The next blog I looked at was http://gizmodo.com/ . The blog seemed scattered with no real theme with each post. It seemed that each post was supposed to be interesting to the audience, but the theme of the blog gave me no interest at all. The only things about this blog that I thoroughly enjoyed was the search bar and the fact that the blog itself has its' own log in and community.
  Another blog that intrigued me was http://gawker.com/ . This blog is basically a gossip blog on celebrities and other big media news in the world. I find that this blog has a consistent theme and good organization skills. The only thing that gives makes me a bit skeptical of this blog is that most of the blog posts are mainly shared articles from different websites by different admins on gawker.com. The only thing that I find that may pull the audience into the blog more than anything else is the small amount of voice each blog post gives, not too much nor too little.
  The last blog that caught my interest was http://postsecret.com/ but I found myself disappointed. While I could see why this blog is popular for its realism and creativity, I found myself disappointed with the lack of description and point of the blog post. I got the feeling that the blog was created then abandoned, there looked as if no effort was actually put into the blog posts besides the copy and paste of images.
  After reviewing these popular sites, I feel that I have found a more clear definition of what a blog should be like for the intended audiences. Hope that everyone received some sort of insight from these blogs too, feel free to comment below of what you thought about them.

Welcome To My Blog

Hello, my name is Gabby. I am currently a college student at Glendale Community College (GCC) in Phoenix, Arizona. The reason for this blog is entirely based on my English 102 class. I have many interests, some of which include art, music, and sports. At GCC my main goal is to get enough credits done before I transfer to Phoenix College to get my Associates in                                                         Paralegal Studies. I also hope to join sports while enrolled in college. My favorite sports are volleyball and soccer. Yet between being enrolled as a full time student, working nearly 30 hours a week, and biking to all my destinations it's hard to see myself relish in the excitement of sports. I believe this is all I have to say about myself so I will end on the note: 

 Thank you for reading my first blog post!