TOW #13: WWF (Visual Text)

          The World Wildlife Foundation (WWF) is the world's leading non-profit conservation organization. Their primary goal as an organization is to combine global reach with a foundation in science, involve action at every level from local to global, and of course to ensure the delivery of innovative solutions to meet the needs of people and nature across the world. Or, in layman's terms, to conserve nature and reduce the most pressing threats on the environment. In order to achieve this goal, the WWF relies heavily on the sponsorship and support from the common citizen and it is for this reason that the majority of their advertisements are geared toward the general public. This ad in particular is used to demonstrate the harsh effects of deforestation, showcasing its impact on the wildlife in an area. Through the use of symbolism and contrasting color palettes the WWF ad is able to successfully bring forth an emotional response from the audience, causing a reconsideration of deforestation and an ultimate demand for change.
         The true genius in this ad comes from its masterful use of symbolism. In showing the cluster of trees in the shape of lungs, the ad symbolically represents the life of the forest and corresponding wildlife. So, with this comparison made, the effects of deforestation are made much more powerful -- showing the death that it causes. In that sense, the contrasting colors of the various hues of brown against the hues of green also create a powerful image for onlookers. This stark difference in colors make it clear how different the brown depicts a sense of death and destruction. It is the four words at the bottom which serve as the final call to action for the audience of the image. The words, "before it's too late" make it clear that the WWF wants those who see this image to make a change and to end the death of the forest. Ultimately, it is these four simple words that make the point of the ad crystal clear and cause a stir in anyone who looks upon it. It is for this reason that this ad is so successful, because it is able to call to the emotions of its audience.

TOW #12: The Elegant Universe (IRB)

          Written in response to his major success with his theories in numerous published scientific magazines The Elegant Universe, by Brian Greene provides a comprehensive, though strictly non-technical, assessment of string theory and its shortcomings. In doing so, it also takes a unique perspective on what scientific discovery is truly about and how this relates to the expectations we have toward our own capabilities -- something which he refers to as the "ultimate theory". It was this amazing insight which ultimately made the book a finalist for the non-fiction Pulitzer prize in 2000. Though the book begins on a primarily scholastic subject, it quickly evolves to something much more in depth and thought provoking as the work continues. Greene's success most heavily falls in the fact that he tells such a topic in an almost narrative form, one which is very unlikely given the subject matter. He is most effective in his use of colloquial diction to describe the mysterious of the universe to the "average man".
          Beginning with a brief consideration of basic physics, the book concentrates on the major conflicts regarding the study. Greene establishes a historical context for string theory as something that could someday become a necessary means of integrating the probabilistic world of particle physics and deterministic Newtonian physics of the macroscopic world. And yes, as Greene himself admits, "this is just as complicated as it sounds" (Greene 45). This concession of its difficulty is one of the many things that makes the book such an enjoyable and easy book to read. Greene continue this colloquial throughout the rest of the chapters to easily relate to audience members. This book, probably better than any others I've read, best relates its scientific work to the average and everyday lives of its audience, only furthering its discussion on the common man.

TOW #11: The Art Of Dying

       Written as an editorial in The Guardian, the emotionally charged article, "The Art of Dying", takes a unique look into the work of famous physician, neurologist, and best selling author Oliver Sacks, a man who successfully revolutionized the way scientific case studies were told. Following the announcement of Dr.Sacks' terminal cancer, the author describes, in much detail, the emotions of finding out the misfortune of such an influential man while simultaneously exploring the lasting legacies of his life (and death) on the science community. The author of the article, Ranjana Srivastava, does this most effectively through the use of many difference anecdotes, describing her own time as a physician and how Sacks had inspired her in her work. This use of these anecdotes serve to bring an emotional feel to the writing and convince the audience, assuredly other fans of Sack's work, of the very thing that sacks himself believes -- that his death should be seen as a way to remember his accomplishments and that there truly is value in embracing our mortality.
        Like much of its body, the article begins with an anecdote. The author tells of her feeling when it was first announced that Dr. Oliver Sacks, her idol, had been diagnosed with metastatic melanoma, discussing the immediate distress that she felt as a "stab through the heart" (3). She is recalls "a former patient who came into the hospital dying of liver failure and metastatic bowel cancer" (5) and begins to tell of the struggle she felt to break the news of her terminal condition. It was at this point that the work from Oliver Sacks had inspired her most, and taught her how to treat people, not just conditions. In a similar fashion, it was the words from Sacks himself who was able to bring her comfort, "like the genial, grandfather-figure he is, he reassured us, oncologist and all, that he still felt intensely alive" (5).  Srivastava ends her article with similar message, exploring the numerous works done by Sacks and expressing the extreme gratitude she felt toward him. She believes, as many still do, that Sacks did what other biological scientists were afraid to do. He taught what it meant to be human and frail.

TOW #10 Gold's Gym Advertisement (Visual)

     Gold's Gym is a well known and nationally recognized American gym that has been around for about 50 years, first opening its doors to the public in May of 1965. To celebrate its successful achievement in longevity, and ultimately to showcase their "legacy of strength", Gold's Gym began its "growing stronger together" campaign in the beginning of 2015. This campaign focused primarily on the introduction of the gym to new clients and began a strong push for new members. As a result of this new campaign the following ad was published in many fitness magazines across the nation. The simplicity of this advertisement is what makes it so successful, utilizing strong contrasting colors and a juxtaposition of contrasting images to depict the effect of their gym in hopes of compelling new people to join. 

      The most eye catching part of this image is the use of bold black letters across a bright yellow backdrop. These colors are not only successful in drawing in attention due to their brightness, but also in serving as an extension of their own product since black and yellow are the colors of the gym. Due to the intensity of these colors, this ad immediately stands out and leaves a lasting impression for readers. However, the most eye catching, and relevant to the point of the ad is the use of contrasting images to represent letters. The way that the two beginning images are positioned makes them appear to take an "A" shape, and because of this, spell the word "FAT" in bold letters. This word corresponds to the emotional response brought forth when viewing the two images of overweight men and brings an ultimately negative connotation to the entire idea. By contrast, the bottom image not only displays a man who is obviously in better shape, but is positioned in such a way so that his body appears to make an "I" shape. With this, the last word appears to be "FIT" rather than "FAT". It this way, the ad implicitly showcases the the positive effects of the gym, making a man (and his corresponding word) go from fat to fit. 

TOW #9: Dumb Kids' Class

         Mark Bowden, a veteran writer for the monthly journal The Atlantic, often focuses his writing on the societal repercussions -- or possible repercussions --  of various political decisions within the country. His essay, Dumb Kids' Class, is no exception to this tradition. Following the presidential consideration of the 'No Child Left Behind' policy by the Obama administration (one which ultimately resulted in no change) Bowden published this article giving a unique perspective to education in this country. Telling of his early childhood in which he was placed in the so-called "dumb classes" before being promoted to the higher level classes, Bowden explores the idea of how early influences affect how children view themselves in the future. Through a satirical description of his time spent in the "dumb" class, strongly facilitated by his use of ironic statements, Bowden intends to show his audience -- the voting class citizen of America who could have a say in the consideration of the policy (at least theoretically) -- that categorizing children at an early age can be dangerous as it is something which remains with the child for life and often results in a parochial outlook toward ones abilities.
          By utilizing ironic statements to describe his childhood experience Mark Bowden successfully creates a humorous tone to his article, accentuating his idea that even with good intentions, the categorizing of students harbors negative results. Bowden begins this style with his description of "the invaluable lessons of the dumb classes" (45) which consisted of avoiding the "spit pit" (44) and how to draw blood without too much injury to yourself. By describing such lessons as "invaluable" and essentially the most important to such a class, Bowden shows how little emphasis was placed on a group of children who were considered academically inept. Bowden directly addresses this fact, stating that "children are exquisitely attuned to the way adults size them up, so there was never any mystery about where anyone stood" (30). In this way, he explains that it is these influences which ultimately lead to children who do not see any more worth than where they were placed. Most powerfully, and what brings the most success to his article, is his use of a similar ironic statement at the end, stating "It’s well and good to enjoy the world’s esteem, I learned, but better still to be underestimated" (54). This ending concludes his idea with the final thought that many children placed in these "dumb classes" are not expected to do anything exceedingly important in the future, and this idea is what leads them down that path precisely.

IRB Intro #2: The Elegant Universe

For my second independent reading I decided to read, The Elegant Universe by Brian Greene. As far as subject descriptions go, the title itself is pretty self-explanatory. This book details the many misconceptions and misunderstandings regarding the current explanation for the happens of the universe -- known as String Theory. With this book author Brian Greene attempts to relate this scientific theory to the human struggle and desire to find what he describes as an "ultimate theory". It was this aspect that truly drew me in to the book. It is not simply a study of the universe, but rather, of the human beings that live within it.

TOW #8 Survival of the Sickest pt. 2 (IRB)

              In completion of Survival of the Sickest, it becomes clear that the initial purpose revealed through the first few chapters is indeed the primary purpose of the book in its entirety. As previously mentioned in an earlier post, Dr. Sharon Moalem's goal in writing such a text is to change the way people view diseases and essentially eradicate the parochial views that correlate with such ideas. To do so, Moalem examines the causes of many common diseases (the latter part of the book dedicated to the diabetes and anemia), tracing their origins and consequently formulating probable reasons for their prevalence to this day. Such an idea that detrimental ailments could somehow prove to be helpful for survival requires an entire reversal of mindset for most individuals. This, in the truest sense, is Moalem's objective. In causing a reconsideration of ideas that many consider "obvious" Moalem extends his message to a further audience -- those outside the medical field.
               The previous post identified appeals to logo, satirical humor and simple diction as Dr. Sharon Moalem's successful techniques in writing. However, after finishing the book, it became obvious that the actual art in writing factored into the success of the purpose. Examples of this "art" in language are seen in his use of repetition and isolation of paragraphs. Toward the end of the book, Moalem utilizes repetition of the phrase "we will know". In repeating this phrase, Moalem successfully gives strength to the meaning of the idea of knowledge. Knowledge is one of the primary motifs present in the book. It is used to facilitate the idea that knowledge is responsible for the outlook of life. In addition, his separation of his paragraph such as "this is true" at the end of his chapters adds emphasis and meaning to his ideals. In this way, Dr. Sharon Moalem's book was extremely successful in accomplishing his purpose.