Dear future APELC member...
First of all, don't be too intimidated by the course outline (or Mr. Yost). If you enjoy reading and writing, you'll probably enjoy this class. I know I did. There will be a lot of writing, entirely non-fiction, so brushing up on some rhetorical terms or writing tips would be a good idea. Essay-writing will make up a bulk of the focus and activities of the class, so be prepared to write a lot. Some writing tips to keep in mind, whether you are writing Analysis, Argument, or Synthesis are: make sure your thesis is clear, link EVERY SUPPORTING TOPIC back to your thesis, and write clearly-the less convoluted the better. These are three big items that always have room for improvement. Another major assessment grade will be group projects (3 or 4 in the year). It is important to do well on these, and two key ways to do that is communicate ideas with your group and PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE. The more smoothly the presentation goes the better. Since the groups will be different every time, it is important to get to know your whole class. My APELC class was very friendly and connected to each other, which helped a lot with the general classroom dynamic, as well as when it came time for group activities.
You may run into some bumps along the way, but fear not, with a little help you will succeed. First, don;t be afraid to ask Mr. Yost or Ms. Pronko for help. They don't bite. If you want help or advice on revising an essay, understanding a reading passage, or on any assignment, definitely go to them before it is too late to seek help. You should also be open to asking your fellow students for help, which is why, as I mentioned before, it is great to have a connected, tightly-knit class. One major bit of advice I have is DO NOT PROCRASTINATE. I made this mistake in the beginning of the year and unfortunately suffered from it. Start a take-home essay four days before it's due if possible, or even sooner. This leaves plenty of time for writing, revising, and seeking help if you need it. If you have questions as to whether an argument or analysis is viable or not, again, do not be afraid to run it by Mr. Yost. He is always ready and happy to help. Make use of his office hours and I/Es. With help and guidance from your teacher and peers, there is no doubt that you can reach a 5 on the test in May. If you find you're using all these tips but are still struggling, again, talk to Mr. Yost. He will be able to help you identify and work on the problem and get your grades up in no time.
Those are the words of wisdom I have for you as you step into the world of AP English Language and Composition. To recap, the most important things to remember are: continue to improve your writing skills, establish friendly links to the rest of your fellow classmates, and do not be afraid to seek help when you need it. Believe me, you do not want to neglect seeking help you know you need. Mr Yost and/or Ms. Pronko want the best for each of their students, and are fully willing and capable to provide guidance-if you are brave enough to seek it. If you are drawn to reading and writing, this course is a great one to take. You get to read non-fiction books of your choice (but must be approved by Mr. Yost) and some of the essay topics you will write about are actually pretty interesting. Good luck with APELC and good luck on the AP Exam-with diligence and support you'll reach that 5.
Monday, June 9, 2014
Tuesday, June 3, 2014
TOW #29-Documentary Part 2
One of the key claims that the Food, Inc. documentary stresses is how mass-produced foods can often lead to serious health problems. For example, numerous cases of food poisoning are reported daily, most of them from mass-produced meats. This problem is also spreading towards foods like spinach and other grains and vegetables. Although recalls are made each time an illness is reported, due to the millions of pounds of food being produced and shipped out each day, with the high possibility that at least one animal or ingredient was carrying a harmful pathogen or bacteria, it is impossible to completely solve the problem. With mass food production companies constantly getting larger and larger and producing more and more, subsequently they are spreading bad pathogens increasingly far and wide. This claim is true because of the many food recalls, and the many cases of food-related illnesses that are reported.
There was an article from the Huffington Post in June of 2013 about the recall of over 20,000 pounds of ground beef being recalled nationally in that month due to the possibility of an e-coli contamination. There was another article from some time ago in the New York Times about California issuing the largest beef recall in U.S. history, nearly 140 million pounds, from schools. 140 million pounds of possibly contaminated meat in one state, and in schools at that, where the children would be the majority of victims. The fact that so much contaminated meat could be in schools is truly scary. The mass-production methods of large food producing businesses often do not thoroughly inspect their animals before killing them and shipping the meat out to consumers. It would simply cost them too much time and money to conduct a rigorous examination of each animal to make sure it is free of any harmful pathogens, bacteria, or diseases. In addition, the animal does not have to be sick itself to be harmful. If the animal is weak, undernourished, or maltreated, it's meat can often have harmful effects on anyone who eats it. In my house, if we store meat in a plastic bag for any period of time, once we use the meat we immediately throw the bag away. For other foods, like fruit, vegetables, sandwiches, etc... we can wash and reuse the plastic bag (saves money). However, if it was used to store raw meat, we immediately throw it out because it cannot be used to store anything else. If the meat was tainted, we want to be sure that it will not taint any other food. This is how dangerous contaminated meat can be. The most common diseases carried by meat are salmonella and e-coli, and children are often warned against touching any meat that looks unusual or has been left un-refrigerated for a period of time. These dangers stem from the fact that the great majority of meat produced is mass-produced (i.e. with inferior conditions for animals and inadequate examinations), and now the danger is spreading to mass-produced grains and vegetables to (although the risks are not as prominent).
Evidence of how dangerous mass-produced foods can be can be seen in how many food-related illnesses are reported. in 2010, the CDC (Center for Disease Control) reported nearly 30,000 food-borne illness reports, of which e-coli and salmonella represented the bulk of causes. 30,000 illnesses in a year is roughly 82 reports a day across the nation. Each day about 82 people report an illness caused by some type of contaminated food. of these 82 people per day, it is highly likely that most (if not all) of them ate fast food or ate food produced by a major farming corporation. These illness might be avoided if the major corporate farming businesses put more revenue into better food, housing conditions, and treatment of their animals, and into examining the animals for potential harmful pathogens. However, these big businesses' main concern is growing bigger, producing more, and gaining more profit. The consequence is that as they produce more likely-contaminated food, and that food is sent all over America and even into foreign nations, they are further spreading diseases like e-coli and salmonella. This results in food recalls, which costs the companies time, money, and prestige. Ultimately, by not investing enough in healthier animals, the mass production companies are not only harming themselves, but are also harming the general population of consumers.
Food, Inc. is correct in its analysis that mass produced foods are often the cause of serious consumer health problems. Millions of pounds of food (mostly meat, and of meat it is mostly beef) are recalled every month, and thousands of food-related illnesses are reported each year. Many of these recalls and illnesses could be avoided if the producers would spend more time and money in ensuring the health of their animals. By not doing so, the companies like Tyson and Cargill are harming both themselves and their customers.
There was an article from the Huffington Post in June of 2013 about the recall of over 20,000 pounds of ground beef being recalled nationally in that month due to the possibility of an e-coli contamination. There was another article from some time ago in the New York Times about California issuing the largest beef recall in U.S. history, nearly 140 million pounds, from schools. 140 million pounds of possibly contaminated meat in one state, and in schools at that, where the children would be the majority of victims. The fact that so much contaminated meat could be in schools is truly scary. The mass-production methods of large food producing businesses often do not thoroughly inspect their animals before killing them and shipping the meat out to consumers. It would simply cost them too much time and money to conduct a rigorous examination of each animal to make sure it is free of any harmful pathogens, bacteria, or diseases. In addition, the animal does not have to be sick itself to be harmful. If the animal is weak, undernourished, or maltreated, it's meat can often have harmful effects on anyone who eats it. In my house, if we store meat in a plastic bag for any period of time, once we use the meat we immediately throw the bag away. For other foods, like fruit, vegetables, sandwiches, etc... we can wash and reuse the plastic bag (saves money). However, if it was used to store raw meat, we immediately throw it out because it cannot be used to store anything else. If the meat was tainted, we want to be sure that it will not taint any other food. This is how dangerous contaminated meat can be. The most common diseases carried by meat are salmonella and e-coli, and children are often warned against touching any meat that looks unusual or has been left un-refrigerated for a period of time. These dangers stem from the fact that the great majority of meat produced is mass-produced (i.e. with inferior conditions for animals and inadequate examinations), and now the danger is spreading to mass-produced grains and vegetables to (although the risks are not as prominent).
Evidence of how dangerous mass-produced foods can be can be seen in how many food-related illnesses are reported. in 2010, the CDC (Center for Disease Control) reported nearly 30,000 food-borne illness reports, of which e-coli and salmonella represented the bulk of causes. 30,000 illnesses in a year is roughly 82 reports a day across the nation. Each day about 82 people report an illness caused by some type of contaminated food. of these 82 people per day, it is highly likely that most (if not all) of them ate fast food or ate food produced by a major farming corporation. These illness might be avoided if the major corporate farming businesses put more revenue into better food, housing conditions, and treatment of their animals, and into examining the animals for potential harmful pathogens. However, these big businesses' main concern is growing bigger, producing more, and gaining more profit. The consequence is that as they produce more likely-contaminated food, and that food is sent all over America and even into foreign nations, they are further spreading diseases like e-coli and salmonella. This results in food recalls, which costs the companies time, money, and prestige. Ultimately, by not investing enough in healthier animals, the mass production companies are not only harming themselves, but are also harming the general population of consumers.
Food, Inc. is correct in its analysis that mass produced foods are often the cause of serious consumer health problems. Millions of pounds of food (mostly meat, and of meat it is mostly beef) are recalled every month, and thousands of food-related illnesses are reported each year. Many of these recalls and illnesses could be avoided if the producers would spend more time and money in ensuring the health of their animals. By not doing so, the companies like Tyson and Cargill are harming both themselves and their customers.
Tow #28-Documentary Part 1
Food, Inc. is a 2008 documentary by Michael Pollan and Eric Schlosser that analyzes corporate farming methods in the United States.The documentary stresses how Americans are so far removed from the actual source of the food they consume that most do not know where their food came from. It also illustrates how mass farming methods over the years have become increasingly more unhealthy and the majority of the market has become concentrated in the hands of four main/large companies (Tyson, Cargills, Smithfield, and Perdue). The first part of the film is about the meat production industry, the second part is about grains and vegetables, and the third portion of the documentary deals with the economics. The intended audience is for the average American consumer, but also extends to the four main companies themselves, all of which refused to be interviewed. In this documentary, Pollan and Schlosser use appeals to pathos and facts from primary sources to show how mass food production methods (a large portion of which is for the benefit of fast food companies) in the United States is, inhumane for animals, unhealthy for consumers, and exploitative of workers and farmers.
Throughout the documentary are scenes of the conditions animals are kept in before being slaughtered for meat. Many of these images show severely cramped, unhygienic conditions. Most of these images are used as appeals to the pathos of the audience, since it is highly likely that the majority of viewers are against animal abuse. For example, one primary source, Carole Morison, a Perdue grower, allowed Pollan to view the inhumane chicken house conditions on the land she managed owned by Perdue. She said that, "“It is nasty in here. There is dust flying everywhere, there is feces everywhere. This isn't farming, this is mass production just like in a factory." However, the conditions the animals are kept in aren't the only thing inhumane about the industry. In the case of these chickens, they are fed and bred to encourage rapid instead of natural growth, so they will become fatter and ready-to-eat sooner. Yet, “their bones and internal organs cannot keep up with the rapid growth.” The consequence is that the birds are often in pain or can barely walk.
The majority of this documentary consists of interviews of primary sources; people who have first hand knowledge of the facts about the mass food production methods occurring in America. Many of these interviews provide evidence of how unhealthy the results of corporate farming are for consumers. A segment was shot of Allen Trenkle, a Ruminant Nutrition Expert at Iowa State University examining the contents of a live cow (painlessly for the cow) who was being fed a diet of cheap corn. In the stomach he found millions of dangerous e-coli bacteria. This is because when cows, whose natural diet is grass, are fed corn (which is cheaper for the large companies), it results in the evolution of acid-resistant e-coli. The bacteria then becomes part of the meat that is packaged and sold in stores and restaurants. One tragic case of this was Barbara Kowalcyk, food safety advocate, whose son died at 2 1/2 of e-coli found in hamburger. New cases of meat-related illness are being reported daily. Another reason why mass food production is detrimental to consumers' health is because, in most cases, the less nutritious a food is, the less expensive it is. For example, you can buy a whole hamburger at a fast food place for 99 cents, but you cannot buy even a head of broccoli at the grocery store for the same price. According to Pollan, this is because, "we have skewed our food system to the bad calories" because the bad calories are cheaper to produce.
The last segment of the video is devoted to the economics of the corporate farming business. These large companies like Smithfield and Tyson are exploitative of their workers and farmers. The farmers are kept bound to these large companies because of debts, and workers in the companies' factories are often composed of the poor minorities of the population (e.g. immigrants). These companies often pay only minimum wage, and do not pay enough attention to safety precautions in their factories. Most of these factories like a Smithfield slaughterhouse that was secretly videotaped by workers provide very poor conditions for both workers and animals. One worker reports there being "blood, urine, and feces everywhere" and that getting injured or sick was a high possibility.
Pollan and Schlosser want to make the American people more aware of how their food comes to be at their tables. Even "Farm Fresh" products are produced by mostly the same few companies that hold a virtual monopoly over the industry. The fact that none of the major companies would allow themselves to be interviewed, and even discouraged their farmers' to refuse interviews, begs the question of what they have to hide. However, this is not the focus of the documentary. The focus of the documentary is to highlight how dis-attached Americans are to the source of their food, and to inform American consumers across the country of how these mass food production methods are inhumane towards animals, harmful to consumers themselves (especially consumers of fast food, i.e. the majority of the nations), and how the major corporate farming consolidations exploit their farmers and workers.
Throughout the documentary are scenes of the conditions animals are kept in before being slaughtered for meat. Many of these images show severely cramped, unhygienic conditions. Most of these images are used as appeals to the pathos of the audience, since it is highly likely that the majority of viewers are against animal abuse. For example, one primary source, Carole Morison, a Perdue grower, allowed Pollan to view the inhumane chicken house conditions on the land she managed owned by Perdue. She said that, "“It is nasty in here. There is dust flying everywhere, there is feces everywhere. This isn't farming, this is mass production just like in a factory." However, the conditions the animals are kept in aren't the only thing inhumane about the industry. In the case of these chickens, they are fed and bred to encourage rapid instead of natural growth, so they will become fatter and ready-to-eat sooner. Yet, “their bones and internal organs cannot keep up with the rapid growth.” The consequence is that the birds are often in pain or can barely walk.
The majority of this documentary consists of interviews of primary sources; people who have first hand knowledge of the facts about the mass food production methods occurring in America. Many of these interviews provide evidence of how unhealthy the results of corporate farming are for consumers. A segment was shot of Allen Trenkle, a Ruminant Nutrition Expert at Iowa State University examining the contents of a live cow (painlessly for the cow) who was being fed a diet of cheap corn. In the stomach he found millions of dangerous e-coli bacteria. This is because when cows, whose natural diet is grass, are fed corn (which is cheaper for the large companies), it results in the evolution of acid-resistant e-coli. The bacteria then becomes part of the meat that is packaged and sold in stores and restaurants. One tragic case of this was Barbara Kowalcyk, food safety advocate, whose son died at 2 1/2 of e-coli found in hamburger. New cases of meat-related illness are being reported daily. Another reason why mass food production is detrimental to consumers' health is because, in most cases, the less nutritious a food is, the less expensive it is. For example, you can buy a whole hamburger at a fast food place for 99 cents, but you cannot buy even a head of broccoli at the grocery store for the same price. According to Pollan, this is because, "we have skewed our food system to the bad calories" because the bad calories are cheaper to produce.
The last segment of the video is devoted to the economics of the corporate farming business. These large companies like Smithfield and Tyson are exploitative of their workers and farmers. The farmers are kept bound to these large companies because of debts, and workers in the companies' factories are often composed of the poor minorities of the population (e.g. immigrants). These companies often pay only minimum wage, and do not pay enough attention to safety precautions in their factories. Most of these factories like a Smithfield slaughterhouse that was secretly videotaped by workers provide very poor conditions for both workers and animals. One worker reports there being "blood, urine, and feces everywhere" and that getting injured or sick was a high possibility.
Pollan and Schlosser want to make the American people more aware of how their food comes to be at their tables. Even "Farm Fresh" products are produced by mostly the same few companies that hold a virtual monopoly over the industry. The fact that none of the major companies would allow themselves to be interviewed, and even discouraged their farmers' to refuse interviews, begs the question of what they have to hide. However, this is not the focus of the documentary. The focus of the documentary is to highlight how dis-attached Americans are to the source of their food, and to inform American consumers across the country of how these mass food production methods are inhumane towards animals, harmful to consumers themselves (especially consumers of fast food, i.e. the majority of the nations), and how the major corporate farming consolidations exploit their farmers and workers.
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