TOW #13 China lands Jade Rabbit robot rover on Moon by Paul Rincon

            It has been 37 years since the last soft moon landing, and right now YUTU, more commonly known as the Jade Rabbit, is roaming around on the moon. In the article China lands Jade Rabbit robot rover on Moon by Paul Rincon details the success of Chinese. Rincon is the Science editor at BBC News Website. The purpose of the article was to detail the latest moon landing, but also speculate what this event means for the Chinese. In order to give information about the landing and show what the possible outcomes are for the Chinese Rincon pulled quotes from multiple diverse reliable sources. Rincon got a quote from one of the space engineers for the lunar program that stated that the mission “is an important component to mankind’s activities to explore the peaceful use of space” which gives the audience a view as to how the Chinese view the landing. Later in the article Rincon pulls a quote from an American professor at the US Naval War College that states “with the US exploration moribund at best, that opens a window for China to be perceived as the global technology leader” this quotes contrasts to what the Chinese have said the landing means, which allows the audience to make their own analysis as to what will come in the future. The audience of the piece would be people who have less of an interest in the actual moon landing, but more of an interest as to what this historic event means for the future. I believe that the author did accomplish his purpose, I was able to get a brief understanding as to what actually happened with the moon landing, while getting a greater knowledge as what this moon landing really means in terms of global powers. I enjoyed that this article wasn't to obviously biased either, he did not just write about what other people who are not Chinese believe the moon landing means, but also let the actual people who designed the mission, the Chinese, give their own words as to what it all means. 

TOW #12 IRB Post 1: Bossypants by Tina Fey

            For my IRB this marking period I decided to read Tina Fey’s autobiography Bossypant, and I am enjoying immensely. This book has only increased my admiration for Tina Fey. In the introduction of the book Fey writes that in writing “this book has been a simple task of retracing my steps to figure out what

factors contributed to this person” (5). I think that this book is not defined by one single purpose. The best way to encompass the book into one purpose is to educate the audiences as to how Tina Fey got to where she is today. There are many different audiences as to who this book appeals to, Fey even took the time in the book to address the different groups of people who would drawn to her book including woman, parents, haters and even people of the future. Different people will be able to get different messages from this book. To achieve her many purposes to her different readers Fey uses humor, which makes sense seeing as how she is a famous comedian writer. The use of her humor makes the whole book seem so much more relatable and genuine, which is essential since she is writing to some many different audiences. A large part of the book so far has been Fey’s experiences in a theater program, which provided her many friends who were gay. Fey is able to put in her own views as to how gay people should be viewed in a way that is is not abrasive, but rather light-hearted humor. “Gay people don’t try to convert people. That’s Jehovah’s Witnesses you’re thinking of” (32). I do believe that Fey is on her way to achieving her purpose in this book. I look forward to finishing her story, because so far she has only written about her experiences growing up being a slashed victim, awkward, boy-repellent girl who had grown gay best friends for her companions. It is a truly captivating book that so far matches the person I thought she was.

TOW #11 A List Of Reasons Why Our Brains Love Lists

      The brain is a complicated part of the body, and I have a feeling that we the human race will never get a complete grasp as to how our minds really work. Maria Konnikova’s wrote an article for the New Yorker that was all about why our brains love lists, with the appropriate title A List of Reasons Why Our Brains Love List. The purpose of the article is to educate the audience about an elementary theory in psychology in order to further the understanding of the brain. Konnikova wrote this article for the people who had minimal if any knowledge about how the brain deals with lists. It can be seen in the article where Konnikova uses a strategy that works well for her audience that also goes to prove the purpose. In the article Konnikova describes how the brain can categorize lists then puts it into simple relatable terms, which allows the audience to get a better understanding as to what she is trying to proves. To be specific Konnikova writes about how the brain works better when it has bulleted lists and then relates it to a topic that nearly every person does: making a grocery shopping list. I do think that the purpose was achieved in some sense in the article. It really only works for the people who have no real knowledge of psychology. I personally am taking a semester psychology at school so some of the stuff in the article was already that I knew. The article works it is just a very elementary article. Konnikova has Ph.D in Psychology and has several specialized books about psychology so she definitely could have written at a much higher level, but she really wrote it for a specific audience. It was meant as an article that would be a quick entertaining reader where the audience could leave some little bits of fun facts about psychology.