TOW #19 - Trump Political Ad

Donald Trump has become huge news in the United States and worldwide. Although he does not seem to be the most qualified presidential candidate, he still has huge support from many people. These people praise political ads such as this one, promoting Trump, trying to convince people to vote for him. They agree with the message promoted by the author, claiming many good things about Trump. I disagree with this poster for many reasons. I find that this poster has no solid argument or evidence to back it up. Although the author claims Trump would provide great leadership, there is no evidence to support that claim;  he has no experience in politics or leadership which proves that he would probably not be a good leader. He has also made many decisions that are considered unconstitutional and so that shows he does not know what he’s doing when it comes to running America. Despite all this, many people still agree with the author today.

If I were to create a new version of this poster, I would probably not include Trump in it, as I feel there is little to no evidence to use to support him. Though if I had to make  a new poster for Trump, it would include actual facts about his past accomplishments. I would keep the american flag as this taps into the audience’s patriotic feelings. Because this is a visual ad, the author did not use any common method or style in his argument. He simply used visual methods as well as some text with reasoning. And he does not cite sources as there are no actual facts, and so this argument is not very effective. This poster would most likely only reinforce someone’s feelings towards Trump if they liked him originally. If someone had never liked Trump I doubt this poster would change that.

TOW #18 - The Physics Of The Perfect Chocolate

Chocolate may very well be the most delicious creation ever to be eaten. Although almost everyone eats chocolate, there is still much many don’t know about it. Since valentine's day happened this month, many different types of chocolate had been on the market and Ethan Siegel, Nasa columnist and science writer, wrote an article to explain the secrets of the delicious dessert. Siegel explains the science behind creating the perfect chocolate. There are actually six different crystalline structures chocolate can take on and there is one specifically that is the chocolate everyone knows and loves. It can be difficult to reach this structure as many name brand chocolates can’t even achieve it. Siegel explains to his audience, those who make chocolate or who are just interested, a simple process on how to create the best chocolate and scientifically why it is the best. In order to attract the attention of readers for an article about a topic most might find boring, science, Siegel utilized many different rhetorical strategies. He made his article topical, starting it and ending it with references to valentine's day. This pertains to people as we all have experienced the holiday and make connections between it and chocolate, these connections attract the reader. He also used very vivid description when describing “ the rich, creamy, shiny-smooth flavor and texture of a perfectly prepared chocolate.” This description makes the readers who enjoy chocolate feel appeal towards his words, this also puts a very clear image in the reader’s mind which makes it much more enjoyable to read. In the intro to his article, he listed all of the terrible problems that can occur when making chocolate, such as it turning out, crumbly, lumpy, or waxy. He then explains with a reassuring tone how he will explain how to avoid these things. Switching from a horrified tone to a comforting one makes the reader feel the need to keep reading so they can learn how to avoid the horrible mistakes. I feel these article was very effective, it informed me of the science behind my favorite dessert. I would have never of known otherwise how complex this sweet really is.

TOW # 17 The Surgeon Will Skype you Now

Surgery is something everyone has experienced, whether going under themselves or helping a loved one needing surgery themselves. It’s scary enough as it is with the all the possible risks, so would having a robot doing the surgery make you less scared, or more? Since the 2000s robots have been used to perform surgery on patients and it is become more and more common as technology advances through the years. In her essay, The Surgeon Will Skype You Now, Alexandra Ossola explains the benefits and disadvantages of having a robot remove a tumor, for example, as opposed to a doctor’s own hands. Ossola, a science writer who has contributed to many science journals, wrote this article for anyone who was interested in newer technology, a reader does not have to understand how surgery or robots work in order to read this. She uses a helpful strategy in order for every possible reader to understand. When writing in terms common people do not typically know, she will explain in ways they do. Ossola explains what’s required for robot surgery, “uncompressed video streaming requires a bandwidth of at least 2 megabits per second (that's less than it takes to stream a high-definition video from YouTube).” Using term such as megabits can mean nothing to a reader, so explaining the concept through youtube allows every reader to understand the concept. This helps allow her article to be accessible to a wider audience. Although this is an article, it uses visual devices to emphasize points to the reader. After explaining all the benefits of robot surgeons, there is a break in text and three big words in bigger and bolder letters, “There is lag.” This acts as a transition from only speaking of the benefits to taking both sides into account. Only bolding the three simple words shows how simple the problem for robot surgeons is, it’s the same problem any reader has while trying to watch Netflix. Not only does this device provide emphasis and transition to the problem, it connects the problem to the reader. I believe this article achieved its purpose, as someone who only has a basic understanding of science and technology I still completely understood and was invested in this interesting article.