Unit 2 Draft
Inquiry: How can innovative technology help save the planet?
Four Creative Spins on Old and New Technology
Cleaner for your Hair- and the Earth-National Geographic's encouragement of shampoo bars
National Geographic is a source that is known for nature advocacy and education of our planet. So, you could imagine my surprise when I clicked on an article that was focused around beauty products. However, once I got reading, I found the article was educating on the innovation of shampoo, the shampoo bar, and why everyone should be a convert. The short and simple article highlights how shampoo bars reduce plastic, last longer than a bottle, and are often qualified to be natural and cruelty free. Not to mention how "TSA isn't going to take soap that's in bar form and a shampoo bar won't ruin your clothes." Overall the article remarks on the handful of good outcomes that the shampoo bar will bring you, your luggage, and the earth, including their recommendations of which to use and why.
Examining the article itself, I found National Geographic made this text very informative in a rather 'quick and dirty' manner. The format was laid out with clear headers, and the information was relayed in an impressively short manner. The diction was very convincing with its optimistic tone. I really enjoyed seeing a highly acclaimed organization make an eco- friendly advocacy article accessible and easy to the eye.
Killing Two Harmful Birds with One Stone -BBC's optimistic story on innovative energy
Looking at climate change and carbon emissions in the air is often seen as something negative and troubling on our planet. However, as destruction is being done, there are also bright minds talking about restoration- this one in particular being a startup called Charm Industrial, where they are troubleshooting two urgent concerns at once. The small California company has created new technology that takes the dead trees and brush from California forest and heats it up in a zero-oxygen chamber, creating oil that they can then put back into the earth. But the oil does more than temporarily rebalancing the earth, as Co-founder Kelly Kinetic explains: “It’s really valuable for its carbon content, and not necessarily its energy content”. This makes it unique in that there will be no desire to re-drill it, leaving the startup with major potential of slowing down the destruction of the earth in more ways than one.
The idea of creating new technology to help the planet is exciting- it gives those with a concern a chance to feel optimistic. However, Charm industrial is one of many companies with a good idea that has a barrier of expense, making this story seem a bit misleading; the optimistic beginning of the innovative technology was destroyed towards the end of the video, as the BBC spared the gory details of how difficult it would be for the company to make a real impact on the earth for the last few minutes. This being said, I think the BBC did a nice job showing the potential the company had, and explained it in a manner that was easy to conceptualize. Unfortunately, the steps of implementing technology make this story one that is unsuccessful at the moment, and I think going in with that information in the beginning would've made it a more informative video.
Looking at the Eco- Friendly Bright Side-The Economist’s article on solar power
This article on new environmental technology was very well written. Even though I went in with a background of knowing a fair amount about solar power, the article took the time to help the viewer understand different types of solar power, how they work, and where they are currently being used. After an extensive backstory, the article formed a concise perspective of the pros and cons of solar power from an overarching view. My only critique for the article, and I mean the only, would be the extensive explanation versus real world applications. I would've liked to hear more about the energy use than the science behind it, though the overall intention of the article was concise, making it an informative read.
Amanda Kearns- Unit 1
I really like the overall style and design of your blog - everything is neatly organized and easy to find. I think your project focus is going to be interesting to read, but you may need some more sources to add in your analysis because the written section is so long.
ReplyDeleteHeidi Currin
Hey Amanda! Overall amazing job so far with your Unit 2 material. Everything from the resources, the the pitch, the library material, and the Unit 2 draft was really well done. As I was reading your Unit 2 draft I found that you clearly articulated your position while engaging the reader. If I had to be nit-picky...the one area I may give suggestion to enrich is making sure to identify your audience. Like I said, you material was incredibly engaging to the reader. Though, you may want to make sure you have a clear audience identified as it is something outlined in the rubric. But again, really really good work here!!!
ReplyDelete- Jack McCarty
Reading the draft, one thing from the rubric would be some type of audience acknowledgment but this is an easy fix otherwise the work here is very good and coherent.
ReplyDelete- Kirk