Gin, Television, and Cognitive Surplus

Gin, Television, and Cognitive Surplus

The main argument in this article is that it is better to do something, anything, than do nothing. People are realizing all they can do with their free time and coming up with great ideas.

Literacy is defined in the article as watching or reading something and acting on what you see or read. Instead of just sitting and watching for no particular reason, investigate what you are seeing, even if it seems stupid because it is better to do something, no matter what it is, than nothing at all.

Cognitive surplus is the free time that people have to create new ideas.

The article matters because the author wants us to realize that we have the ability, especially with the technology we have, to create so much. People just have to refrain from laziness and being afraid of trying new things.

The author emphasizes the fact that the lady he was in an interview with, was not really buying what he was saying. He continually repeats this by saying, “she was not digging the line of thought at all.” This is important because it shows his point that people need to realize the opportunities they have and not just disregard them or be too lazy to do something about it. That is his main point in the article.  

Is Google Making Us Stupid?

Is Google Making Us Stupid?

The main argument in this article is that because information is so easy for us to access now, we are losing the ability to sit and read things and soak up information. People are getting lazy and our minds are constantly wandering if we sit and try to read something that is longer than a couple paragraphs.

The author, like a growing number of people, relies on the Internet to gain quick information. This has caused a problem with people staying focused on one thing. He starts to quickly skim the text and get the basic information rather than try to understand it fully.

I think literature in this article is described as “Our ability to interpret text, to make the rich mental connections that form when we read deeply”.

The definitions from the two articles are very similar. They are both about reading information and not just taking it for face value, but digging deeper and seeing the whole meaning.

People have formed new forms of reading. We “power browse” and quickly skim through articles and look at the titles. People want things immediately now.

The author uses Nietzsche, Frederick Taylor, and the main goal of Google to support his claims.

It is very effective evidence because the sources are popular and reliable. It backs up all of his claims about the brain and how technology has changed it.

“As we come to rely on computers to mediate our understanding of the world, it is our own intelligence that flattens into artificial intelligence.” The topic matters because we do not want to give up the intelligence we have just because of laziness or because we can rely on computers to do things for us. The author does also say that not everything that comes with technology is bad and that we should be “skeptical of my skepticism”. But we also cannot deny that technology has “dumbed” people down in some ways.

I am going to analyze the account of Chad Johnson, also known as Ochocinco. Chad is a retired NFL wide receiver. Since his playing days, he has been a frequently talked about figure and he is very active on his Twitter and Instagram accounts. He interacts with fans on a daily basis asking questions and even meeting up with them when he is in a followers city. He constantly states his love for his followers, and he does have a lot of them, about 3.7 million on Twitter. He tweets tons of times per day and frequently posts pictures or videos on Instagram. As a follower of Chad Johnson, you feel like you know exactly what is going on in his life and it is very enjoyable to see what he is thinking and how he feels. That could be a dangerous thing for him, but that is just the way he is.

The music from the film “The Great Gatsby” is a blend of hip-hop and jazz. Jay-Z joined Anton Monsted and Baz Lurhmann in producing the music for the movie and it has been a hit. They brought together many different talents in music such as Andre 3000, Beyoncé, Lana Del Rey, wil.i.am., and many other artists to weave together the popular music. One of the main reasons why they blended the two genres of music is because of their popularity. Jazz was very popular at the time F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote “The Great Gatsby” and hip-hop is very popular now. Jay-Z is a very well known force in hip-hop not only for his music, but for his persona as a businessman and producer as well. He incorporated some of his own songs into the movie but also helped produce the rest of it.

The mood of the music really helps set the tone of the movie. In the party scenes there is up-beat, exciting music playing that makes you want to dance and have a good time like the people in the movie are. They use “jazz vernacular” and incorporate it with the hip-hop beats to make for a very exciting party scene full of dancing. In Jay-Z’s song “100$ Bill” he wrote it “as a direct response to the scene” in the movie, so it flows perfectly.

The scenes in the movie also affect the music. If you just listen to the music, you can only get so much out of it. The movie provides a visual for how the song is meant to be felt and shows how the people are reacting in the scene. For example, the song “Young and Beautiful” by Lana Del Rey is fantastic when you listen to it, but when you listen and watch the scene, you see the connection between Daisy and Gatsby and how they feel about each other. It gives you a new feel for what the words truly mean.

The music absolutely fits in with the movie and the theme. The blend is perfect and it really controls the mood of the scenes and causes you to feel for the situations. The party scenes make you feel happy and worried about nothing but having a good time and the music incorporated with those scenes set the tone for how the party is going. The first party scene is happy and crazy, while the second one (where Daisy shows up) is meant to be darker, and that is where “Back to Black” is played to get you to feel differently about the two parties.

       When I first get a writing assignment I tend to put it off and procrastinate until i really need to do it. I never feel rushed, but I like to do things quickly while still doing my best job. I start to brainstorm by writing down ideas on paper, this helps me gather everything I have to begin with. Then, I use the internet to get any other ideas I may need to write a good paper and add those to my original list. I like to listen to music when I write because it helps me stay calm and keep focused on what I'm doing. I listen to R&B type music while I'm working. Artists like The Weeknd, Justin Timberlake, Ne-yo, Partynextdoor, and Miguel help me stay focused. Music helps me get through almost everything so it really helps a lot when writing.
       The hardest part about the writing process for me is the start. I can never seem to know how to start off my papers effectively. I always struggle with how to get the readers attention in the beginning; do i start off with a question? Or do i try to be funny? Once I get past the introduction, everything in the middle seems to just flow and I don't struggle with putting my ideas together. Once the conclusion comes, I struggle with what to put in there just like the introduction. I want to make sure I close the paper effectively and smoothly so that the reader enjoys it. I struggle with making the conclusion the same as the introduction because I don't know what else to put there. The final thing that I find hard is where to use colons and semi-colons. I feel like I always use them wrong, but I try.
       The environment that I work best in is my bed. I feel most comfortable there with my music in and nobody to bother me. I also prefer to work at night. I hate mornings, but i really love the nighttime. I am most awake and comfortable later in the day so that is when I think I work best.
       At the end of my papers, I proofread myself and make sure everything is good with my paper. I usually don't ask for help, I like to do things on my own. I also like to only do one draft and be done. I don't do multiple drafts because it just doesn't seem necessary to me. I feel like the one I am doing now is gonna be my best.