[Thank You for a Great Class]

I am almost finished with your sections. I hope to start inputting grades by Wednesday. If you emailed me, I'll get back to you as soon as I'm done reading papers.

I'll also email everyone about a hike this weekend.

Again, thank you for a fun semester!

-D

[Week 17: Tu 13]

Week 17: Tu 13
Class: End-of-class review
Due: Process Analysis

[Process Analysis]

You are being asked to write a process analysis, or reflection, of how your writing has changed during this course. The goal is to discover something about yourself as a writer and thinker. Along with the process analysis, you will need to embed relevant examples that highlight your process in writing an essay and evaluating, workshopping, editing and revising that same essay. These examples must be included in the paragraphs in your essay, not attached as an appendix. Remember, the focus here is on the process, not the product.

Consider your strengths and weaknesses as a writer when you began English 1B. Think about what you learned over the semester and what skills you will use in future coursework and beyond. 

1. Write a 1200-1400 word essay that analyzes your writing and yourself as a writer. 
2. Your response must be in standard essay format, NOT numbered or in Q&A format. 
3. You can address the topics in any order that helps you make your point. 
4. Include the word count at the end of your essay.

Address the first item in the table and then two of the three other areas in the chart:

Area of Reflection	Questions to Prompt Your Thinking
Writing Strategies (REQUIRED)	Identify writing habits and practices that work well and that you will continue to use in your future writing. Illustrate with samples from your semester’s writing. Where do you do your best work? What tools are helpful when writing? What writing strategies and practices did you learned in this course that work well for you? Analyze what you think these preferences say about you as a writer and a learner.
Research	Include an example of summary, paraphrase, or direct quotation. Why did you choose one method over the other? How did you weave the information into your essay or provide transitions?
Feedback	What advice did you receive (from peer review, tutoring, workshop, instructor feedback) that was particularly helpful when revising your work? Illustrate using at least two examples from past assignments, including the comments. How can you apply that advice to future writing?
Revision	Analyze how you revised a specific paragraph. Describe the choices you made and why; include the paragraph in your essay.

You are being graded on the following:

• Did you answer at least three questions and include appropriate examples?
• Does your reflection demonstrate serious consideration of your writing process?
•  Do the examples you include support your reflection?
• Is the overall presentation of the reflection clear and professional?
• Does your writing reflect college-level syntactic variety and diction and demonstrate your fluency with the competencies established in first-year composition (grammar, mechanics, usage, etc.)?

The reflective analysis counts for 10% of your final grade. No late papers.

Due: Tue 05.13

[Futurism in the News 04.06.14]

• Stephen Hawking says AI could be a huge mistake for humanity (Independent)
• What if your bicycle could fold to the size of an umbrella? (Inhabitat)
• First case of MERS hits the US; patient on the mend (Science News)
• Imogen Heaps develops music-creating gloves (Ecouterre)
• The next generation of roller coasters set to debut (Wired)
• New billboards can fight pollution by cleaning the air (Inhabitat)

[Week 16: Tu 06/Th 08]

Week 16: Tu 06/Th 08
Class: Multimedia presentations
Due: RESEARCH PAPER (FINAL DRAFT)

Upcoming:

Week 17: Tu 13
Class: End-of-class review
Due: Process Analysis

[Futurism in the News 04.29.14]

• Google's self-driving cars log 700,000 miles, learn how to drive in "thousands" of traffic situations (Ars Technica)
• Russia to NASA: Get a trampoline to get to the International Space Station (Yahoo! News!)
• New chandelier can visualize a data stream of your choice (Wired)
• New "RainHouse" transforms rain water into purified drinking water (Inhabitat)
• How IED hunting technology can help in the fight against poachers (io9)

[Week 15: Tu 29/Th 01]

Week 15: Tu 29/Th 01
Class: Writers workshop; Multimedia presentations
Due: RESEARCH PAPER (UP TO PAGE 8; BRING 1 COPY)

Upcoming:

Week 16: Tu 06/Th 08
Class: Multimedia presentations
Due: RESEARCH PAPER (FINAL DRAFT)

Week 17: Tu 13
Class: End-of-class review
Due: Process Analysis

[Futurism in the News 04.24.14]

• Norwegian hexapod robot can morph into a sphere (Business Insider)
• NASA is going to Mars in style (Wired)
• Cryonics Institute will freeze you today to revive you in the future (Daily Beast)
• The cast of the future is here (Inhabitat)
• Saudi Arabia set to construct world's tallest skyscraper (Melbourne Herald Sun)
• Artificial skylights bring you sunlight whenever you want it (Gizmodo)

[Week 14: Tu 22/Th 24]

Week 14: Tu 22/Th 24
Class: Reading discussion; Multimedia presentations
Due: REFLECTION 6; RESEARCH PAPER (UP TO PAGE 4; BRING 2 COPIES)

Upcoming:

Week 15: Tu 29/Th 01
Class: Writers workshop; Multimedia presentations
Due: RESEARCH PAPER (UP TO PAGE 8; BRING 1 COPY)

Week 16: Tu 06/Th 08
Class: Multimedia presentations
Due: RESEARCH PAPER (FINAL DRAFT)

Week 17: Tu 13
Class: End-of-class review

Due: PROCESS ANALYSIS

[Reflection 06: Who Wants to Live Forever?—The Science of Whole Brain Emulation]

What if the end wasn't really the end? What if science and technology promised us life after death via the digital transference of your mind? That is the premise of Whole Brain Emulation (WBE) or "mind uploading." Specifically, WBE is the hypothetical copying of a person's consciousness, including personality and memories, into an artificial digital device or wireless network. Proponents argue that within our lifetime we will have the capability of electronically transferring our minds beyond a physical body. If this indeed becomes a reality (and there are many who say it is not), how would it affect how we define our own humanity? Is a human still a human when he or she is no longer contained in a flesh and blood vessel? And would death have the same meaning for us if we knew we had an electronic out? Finally, if WBE were available today, would you opt to transfer your consciousness into a machine at the time of your "death"?

Include at least two of the following in your discussion:

• "Will People Alive Today Have the Opportunity to Upload Their Consciousness to a New Robotic 
• Body?" (Popular Science)
• "'Transhumanists' are planning to upload your mind to a memory stick…" (Daily Telegraph)
• "'Mind Uploading' and Digital Immortality May be Reality by 2045, Futurists Say" (Huffington Post)
• "Scientists are Convinced Mind Transfer is the Key to Immortality" (Motherboard)
• "The Strange Neuroscience of Immortality" (Chronicle of Higher Education)
• "You Might Never Upload Your Brain Into a Computer" (io9)

Required:

• MLA Style
• Works cited 
• One full page in length

Due: Th 04.24

[Futurism News 04.17.14]

• "Smart Highways" debut in The Netherlands (Inhabitat)
• The mass production of artificial human blood nears reality (Telegraph)
• Women receive vaginal implants made from their own cells (Popular Science)
• Confirmed: Toyota will launch hydrogen fuel cell-powered cars in 2015 (AutoCar)
• Space cherry tree baffles scientists (USA Today)
• Japanese company giving maglev technology to US for free (Popular Science)

[ENG 1B Assessment: Annotated Works Cited]

As part of the the Department's ongoing assessment of 1B courses, you will write a brief annotated works cited. The process is simple:

1. Choose a website, article, or book from your research paper sources
2. Cite the source in proper MLA format
3. Write a brief (2-4 sentence) annotation in which you: A) Describe the source—What is it you are using? B) Assess the source’s integrity—why is it a legitimate source? C) Describe the reason you are using this source, as well as how you will use it—How does it fit into the framework of you paper?
4. Include a full heading and header, just as it were a regular assignment.

See the sample below:

Collin James
ENG 1B: 25
Annotated Works Cited Assessment
04.17.14

Works Cited

Schiff, Stacy. Cleopatra: A Life. New York: Little, Brown, 2010. Print.

Sutcliff takes an academic and historical approach to Cleopatra, which moves her beyond the mythology to establish her as a legitimate world player in her time. In this book, Cleopatra is more than simply a beautiful queen, she is a wise and devoted leader who will go to great depths to protect her people. I am using this book to supplement a section in my paper on prominent female world leaders, such as Queen Elizabeth. Specifically, I am drawing from a chapter on Cleopatra's political skills.

Please email these (dhdelao@gmail.com) in a Word document by 6 PM tonight.

Thank you.

[Week 13: Tu 15/Th 17]

Week 13: Tu 15/Th 1
Class: EXPOSITORY; Reading discussion; Multimedia presentations
Due: RESEARCH PAPER (UP TO PAGE 2; BRING 2 COPIES)

Upcoming:

Week 14: Tu 22/Th 24
Class: Reading discussion; Multimedia presentations
Due: REFLECTION 6; RESEARCH PAPER (UP TO PAGE 4; BRING 2 COPIES)

Week 15: Tu 29/Th 01
Class: Writers workshop; Multimedia presentations
Due: RESEARCH PAPER (UP TO PAGE 8; BRING 1 COPY)

Week 16: Tu 06/Th 08
Class: Multimedia presentations
Due: RESEARCH PAPER (FINAL DRAFT)

Week 17: Tu 13
Class: End-of-class review
Due: PROCESS ANALYSIS

[Futurism News 04.08.14]

• Were physicists and celebrities tricked into appearing in a new Geocentrism documentary? (Slate) 
• до свидания: NASA severs ties with Russian space agency—but ISS cooperation will remain (Popular Science)
• Elaborate subterranean grid system could someday protect cities from earthquakes (Gizmodo) 
• Mystery light spotted on Mars (ABC News)
• Charge your smartphone in 30 seconds (Inhabitat)
• 2014 may see the return of a devastating El Niño (Slate)

[Close Reading: Humans and Technology]

Here are the eight scenes you may choose from for your close reading this week. Again, you will be examining the ways in which humans interact with technology in a scene from a film. The goal is to closely analyze the scene and in order to reveal new levels of understanding. We will discuss how this is done in class this week.

"We Made You Cause We Could" from Prometheus (Ridley Scott, 2012)


"Mr. Eddie Vedder from Accounting" from Hackers (Iaine Softley, 1995)


"The Duel" from Electric Dreams (Steve Barron, 1984)


"Do You Know How to Get Out of Here?" from Her (Spike Jonze, 2013)—NSFW

"It's Someplace That Does a Thing" from Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (Michel Gondry, 2004)


"Die, Mutha F--kas, Die" from Office Space (Mike Judge, 1999)—NSFW


"I May Throw Up on Ya" from Star Trek (JJ Abrams, 2009)


"Mecha, Orga" from A.I. Artificial Intelligence (Steven Spielberg, 2001)

[Week 12: Tu 08/Th 10]

Week 12: Tu 08/Th 10
Class: CLOSE READ; Reading discussion; Multimedia presentations, Lecture—"Close Reading a Film”
Due: REFLECTION 05

Upcoming:

Week 13: Tu 15/Th 17
Class: EXPOSITORY; Reading discussion; Multimedia presentations
Due: RESEARCH PAPER (UP TO PAGE 2; BRING 2 COPIES)

Week 14: Tu 22/Th 24
Class: Reading discussion; Multimedia presentations
Due: REFLECTION 6; RESEARCH PAPER (UP TO PAGE 4; BRING 2 COPIES)

Week 15: Tu 29/Th 01
Class: Writers workshop; Multimedia presentations
Due: RESEARCH PAPER (UP TO PAGE 8; BRING 1 COPY)

Week 16: Tu 06/Th 08
Class: Multimedia presentations
Due: RESEARCH PAPER (FINAL DRAFT)

Week 17: Tu 13
Class: End-of-class review
Due: PROCESS ANALYSIS

[Futurism News 04.03.14]

• Go to space in a balloon—for only $75,000 (The Awesomer)
• Coming soon: Night vision contact lenses (Discover)
• "Lab-grown" Chicken McNuggets coming to McDonald's (Inhabitat)
• The Navy has developed a fire-fighting robot (ITProPortal)
• The Crabster is ready for ocean exploration (Discover)
• For those times you don't need your swimming pool (DesignLaunches)

[Week 11: Tu 01/Th 03]

Week 11: Tu 01/Th 03
Readings: PHYSICS—3: Future of Medicine – 9: A Day in the Life in 2100; eR—“The Basics of How to Read a Film” (Rutgers University WIRE), “How to Do a Close Reading” (Harvard College Writing Center)
Class: EXPOSITORY; Reading discussion; Multimedia presentations; Lecture—“Constructing a Research Paper: A How-To”
Due: RESEARCH PAPER THESIS

Upcoming:

Week 12: Tu 08/Th 10
Class: CLOSE READ; Reading discussion; Multimedia presentations, Lecture—"Close Reading a Film”
Due: REFLECTION 05

 

[Futurism News 03.29.14]

• New program turns you into a composer simply using just your keyboard (Wired)
• Computer programs begins deciphering dolphin whistles (New Scientist)
• New app gives you a floor plan in minutes (Architizer)
• David Beckham unveils his stunning proposal for a new Miami MLS soccer stadium (Huffington Post)
• Smell your food before ordering using this new app (Inhabitat)
• "Android Wear" has arrived (Ecouterre)

[Reflection 05: Count Me In—On the Rise of the Citizen Scientist]

In their "Top Ten Forecasts for 2014 and Beyond," the World Futurist Society said citizen science "is on its way to becoming the favored twenty-first-century model for conducting large-scale scientific research." Indeed, citizen science, in which the public participates and collaborates with scientists in research, has had a democratizing effect on the scientific world. The trend has allowed people from all walks of life the opportunity to participate in a variety of research, ranging from the tracking of migration patterns to the measuring ocean acidification. For this reflection, explore the potential impact of the citizens scientist in the 21st century.

Include at least two of the following in your discussion:

• "Citizen Science Rocks!" (Philadelphia Inquirer)
• "Eight Apps that Turn Citizens into Scientists" (Scientific American)
• "First-ever Bluebird Twins Highlight Citizen Science’s Value in Studying Rare Events"  (PLOS)
• "Kids Count: Young Citizen Scientists Learn Environmental Activism (Edutopia)
• "'Citizen Science' Gains Momentum in Northwest and Nationally" (NPR) 
• "Use Your Computer to Help with Climate Research" (Lifehacker Australia)

Required:

• MLA Style
• Works cited 
• One full page in length

Due: Th 04.03