Interview Questions

1.  What bodily infections do you prescribe antibiotics for the most?
2.  Do you prescribe the same medicines frequently?
3.  As a doctor, what is your stance on the issue of over prescribing antibiotics?
4. Have you seen over prescription have an effect during your time as a doctor?
5. Has medicine changed during your career? If yes, how so?
6.Do you think that different branches of medicine approach the use of antibiotics differently?
7. What do you do if an antibiotic is not effectively treating a patient?

First Four Research Paper Sources!

John Evans, et al. "Stemming The Tide Of Antibiotic Resistance (STAR): A Protocol For A Trial Of A Complex Intervention Addressing The 'Why' And 'How' Of Appropriate Antibiotic Prescribing In General Practice." BMC Family Practice 10.(2009): 1-10. Academic Search Elite. Web. 15 Nov. 2011.
This article discusses the surge of over-prescribing antibiotics that seems to have taken over the world. In this article, a solution to this problem is also evaluated, as well as a protocol that is hoping to be adopted. It is written by the editor of a highly acclaimed research magazine, Academic Search Elite.  I will use this article to help support my point that there are negatives involving antibiotic use, and one of the most prominent is their over-use. 

N. Rams, et al. "Antibiotic Prescribing Over The Last 16 Years: Fewer Antibiotics But The Spectrum Is Broadening." European Journal Of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases 28.8 (2009): 893-897. Environment Complete. Web. 15 Nov. 2011.

This article discusses the advances in modern science and medicene that have been made in the 16 years between 1992 and 2009.  The main focus of this piece of research is to discuss how not as many revolutionary medicinal discoveries have been made in this time, but the amount of antibiotics available to the masses has broadened and increased.  I will use this article as a backbone of the argument concerning the past and present of antibiotic research, and how this may affect the future.

Nordqvist, Christian. "What Are Antibiotics? How Do Antibiotics Work?." Medical News Today: Health News. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Nov. 2011. <http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/ar
This news article addresses the basics of antibiotics:  what they are, how they work, where they come from, and how we use them.  Although it is simplistic and brief, it will be vitally important in my paper as a basis on which to build from and draw definitions. 

Stein, Richard A. "Antibiotic Resistance: A Global, Interdisciplinary Concern." American Biology Teacher 73.6 (2011): 314-321. Academic Search Elite. Web. 15 Nov. 2011.
This article, written by the editor of the American Biology Teacher magazine, discusses the ways in which viruses are able to become immune to our antibiotics, which then become useless.  It also mentions the ways in which viruses are able to "outrace our scientists" and become nearly unstoppable.  For this reason, this article will be hugely effective in my paper because it will help support my claim that antibiotics become dangerous when we use them too much and unwittingly develop viruses that cannot be cured by current sciences. 

Final Paper Brainstorming

1.      Predatory lending

2.      Walmart legal issues – involving taking advantage of employees

3.      Nuclear Research

4.      Invasive species

5.      Antibiotics in the public

6.      Childhood obesity

7.      How the media portrays violence

8.      Four day school week

Predatory lending

What is predatory lending?

Who does it affect?

Are there actually pros to a problem like this?

What are the long term effects of this issue?

Invasive Species

What defines a species as invasive?

What right do humans have to pick sides in nature?

How often does this occur?

Is it natural or caused by outside influences?

Antibiotics in the public

How often are antibiotics overprescribed?

How much/long does it take for one to become immune?

How do antibiotics work on a global scale?

Are they harmful or helpful?

How the media portrays violence

Is the way that violence is shown on the news a good thing?

Do video games effect how children view violence?

Has violence increased as the public’s exposure to violence has increased?

Does the media scare people too much?

Four day school week

Are student’s still required to attend the same amount of days?

Why would a school change to this schedule?

What are the possible benefits?

More Examples of Logical Fallacies

Fallacy: Slippery Slope

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FX6Yx1l1eus&feature=relmfu

This is an excellent example of the slippery slope fallacy, in which the arguer attempts to start domino effect of logic, in which one thing will dramatically cause many other events to occur. Typically, these arguments are borderline ridiculous, and the slippery slope is, in my opinion, one of the easiest fallacies to pick out while simply listening to someone make their point.  In this example, “Slippery Slope Guy” plays the comic role of exaggerating this fallacy to humorously poke fun at politician and other public figures that use this fallacy in their own speeches.  His argument is insane:  if we give immigrants a driver license, they will suddenly be able to be the doctor of our President. Ummm … right.  This kind of logic is hyperbolic to say the least.

Fallacy: Post Hoc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRJUvFG8gbE&feature=related

In the Post Hoc fallacy, it is assumed that because A occurred and then B occurred, A therefore caused B.  On the contrary, just because two things occur does not mean they caused each other.  Correlation does not cause causation, as my AP Statistics teacher has explained many a times.  This fallacy reminds me of my Stats class in a lot of ways: for example, the post hoc fallacy is similar to the concept of confounding variables, in which an experiment may not produce valid statistical results because other variables had an effect upon the different levels of the experiment.  In the same way, the post hoc fallacy can try to prove causation, but it cannot be made valid since other factors most likely had to do with the result. 

Fallacy: Red Herring (and being completely ignorant)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lj3iNxZ8Dww

                The red herring fallacy is used to distract from the original problem or question, in hopes of avoiding answering it.  In this pageant example, the idiotic girl doesn’t know how to answer the question so she rambles about Iraq, world peace, and Mexican education instead of answering the question about children not being able to find the US on a map.  The history behind the name of this fallacy comes from fox hunting in Europe, where they would sometimes attempt to distract the hunting dogs by having them smell smoked red herring instead of the fox trail.  See what I did there?  I started talking about the history of the fallacy instead of continuing my argument because I didn’t know what else to say, so this in itself was a lovely example of the Red Herring Fallacy.  

Logical Fallacies - Response

Many logical fallacies are used in this episode, and they are both well executed and entertaining. The tv show hosts brings in his guest to actually play the leading role in the strawman fallacy, in which his argument is being set up simply to be knocked down - this makes the opposite point.  Next, a red herring fallacy was used when the guest speaker changed the subject from the original question asked and began to talk about the diseases that illegal immigrants bring with them when they cross over the border.  Then, an appeal to authority was used when the guest speaker defends his point by simply saying, "That's right ... you heard that person on TV say it", and also referencing the fact that many of his key points were provided by "Princeton's finest professor" or "Einsteins own" . At the same time, an appeal to pity is being used when he talks about the "terrible, awful" effects of leprosy on the American public.  And then a bandwagon fallacy is used when the "expert" explains that so many educated scholars agree, so you should, too! I think this comedy is effective in poking fun at the way that many figureheads and proponents debate in current media, and it is a little refreshing to be able to sit back and enjoy that silliness, knowing that I can pick apart what I am hearing and decide on my own what to believe.

Editorials - European Economic Meltdown

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/europes-day-of-reckoning-on-its-financial-crisis-is-at-hand/2011/10/10/gIQAGHnldL_story.html

http://www.menafn.com/qn_news_story.asp?storyid={9c68e06f-bf3c-4446-a161-8221fc16fc0a}

Both of these editorial articles discuss the economic meltdown that is really beginning to take place in Europe currently.  The first takes on a more dire tone as it discusses all the reasons why every European country is going to soon come to reckoning over the financial crisis, and how there is not much that can be done to stabilize the market once again.  However, the second editorial takes a more global approach, discussing how the future of America’s economy may rest in the crux of what happens to Greece in the upcoming months. I feel like both articles are convincing, but the second offers a kind of hope while the first does not. The second one also pulls the United States of America into the mix, in reference to how we will be affected if Greece defaults, while the other editorial has a stronger focus on the European Union alone. Both articles quote European officials, like the German chancellor and French president, as well as American newspaper reports from titles like The New York Times. Also, both articles agree on the fact that “something big” is about to happen concerning the economic issues that can be seen all around the world. They both emphasize that because of deflation of currency, worldwide recession, stagflation, and entire countries being unable to pay the bills, the world has definitely reached a catch 22. If a country, which is significant to the global economy, goes bankrupt, countries that they owe money to will also go bankrupt … and this reaction can continue on like a chain of dominoes.  This would result in a global economic collapse, and since that has never happened before, no one really knows what will happen.  I would like to better understand this entire concept, so I think it would be really interesting to write an unbiased paper on this topic.

Story Telling from O'Brian - Response

                More than anything, the way that Tim O’Brian tells his stories is honestly. There is no sugar coating, or detail changing, or smoothing out at the corners.  He says that true war stories have no point, and this reminds  me of something my mom always tells me, which is that if you go through something in life that does not seem to have a point, life is the point, and that is all.  But it’s everything, really.  Some parts of O’Brian’s writing made me feel like throwing up:  who could shoot a baby buffalo that way?  Then again, who could kill some young kid in a booby trap that way, sending him up into a tree in pieces?  Who could burn down a whole mountain because of the voices you hear within your own soul?  This is a crazy world, and it is hard to write about. But O’Brian puts the reality down onto paper the way it is, hoping that someone will listen, and I think that that is why his stories are so effective.  Other parts of his writing made my eyes glossy:  the part about it being a love story, albeit a ghostly one, instead of a war story … or the part about waking up in the middle of the night, years later, to finally understand some elusive moral nugget of gold. That is an honestly written story right there. 

Show, Don't Tell

Telling:  It looked like a haunted house.

Showing: During the day, sunlight seemed to avoid the decrepit building:  old cedar shingles which covered the empty house had turned charcoal grey over time and the shadows that were cast into the yard seemed to take on shapes and characters of their own.  On nights when the full moon hung in the sky, however, the abandoned house came alive with unimaginably eerie noises and sights.  The ancient, moth-eaten curtains could be seen moving in front of the second story windows, lights flickered on and off sporadically, and the sound of a woman crying could be heard all the way down the street ...

In Class Dialogue

My sister stumbled down the stairs at about ten, her hair messy and her eyes still filled with sleep. Even though she had barely woken up, I had been awake for hours: making tea,chatting on the phone, and even working on a little homework.
“Hey, do you want to go out for breakfast?” I ask, hoping to start her day off right. Her eyes light up for a moment, but then her smile fades.
“Oh, I’d love to, but I don’t think what’s left off my allowance can cover it.”
“Really?” I question, surprised. “How much do you have?”
She runs back up the stairs, calling over her shoulder, “Let me go look, just a sec!” In a few moments she’s back, but I can already tell from her face that we’ll be eating cold cereal at home today.
“How much?” I probe, curious.
Shrugging, she replies, “About thirty-five cents.” After an awkward pause she grins, and I smile, too. What in the world did she spend all her cash on?
“Thirty-five cents? Jeez!” I tease, messing up her hair a little more with my hand. She scrunches her nose, and then heads towards the fridge to search in its cavernous depths for something free to eat.

Free Write - Sept 8

* Pheasant hunting* 

Daddy wakes me up in the morning, before morning is really here.  4:30 am.  I open my window, and the stars stare back at me with sparkling eyes.  I throw my hair back into a pony tail, messy and loose, add a baseball cap maybe.  Dad is down in the kitchen, and as I come downstairs, his smile and whistled morning song are there to greet me, just like always.  And there are the dogs, too.  Elsie and Boscha, their sleek bodies vibrating with excitement as their little docked tails wag with pure, concentrated joy.  They know what’s coming.  We load up the white pick up truck, and I climb into the cab.  It is dark outside, and the lack of light folds me up and tucks me safely into its space.  The interior of the truck smells like jeans, dog, and the musty scent of heavy cloth gun cases, passed down from my grandpa.  As we drive (my favorite part), the stars slip away to the background and let sunbeams take center stage, as the rising sun lifts itself above the rugged mountains and pierces through the light, strawberry cream clouds.  Daddy turns the radio on quiet to a country station (this is the only time we really listen to country music; it settles right in the air and feels good in our ears). I curl up in my seat, resting my cheek against the cold glass, watching my breath fog it up a little. I fall asleep, the radio humming lullabies so gently, the dogs in the back resting quietly, my daddy and I talking about philosophy, elk hunting, my school schedule, or maybe old memories.  He is a great story teller, and knows so many things. It is light outside now, and the trees we pass look like they’ve caught afire:  orange and red blaze across the outstretched fingers of tree branches, and look absolutely stunning.  We drive passed Ronan.  On the outside edge of this little town, the fields start … wheat, mostly.  Soon, the fields meld into a duck nesting area: wetlands and wheat fields, little marsh ponds and tree rows that my daddy knows like the back of his hand.  Dirt roads.  We park, and my stomach drops a little because the drive is now over, and I always feel this little inkling in me that cries out for the ride with my dad in our own little contained universe to go on forever.  But we emerge into the larger than life world of nature, surrounded by the fresh air soaked in wonderful smells, surrounded by golden fields that are held in the arms of the Mission Mountains, jagged and majestic like I imagine the Swiss Alps are …. 

*Parker Has a Seizure* 

I am 7.  The baseball game is on tv, and I am paying very close attention because I want to love the sport.  Momma is on the couch reading, Leah is playing a game on the floor, Daddy is on the couch too, watching the game and flipping through a Cabella’s catalog.  Elsie, just a puppy maybe 2 months old, is probably asleep somewhere nearby, and Parker is curled up on the soft, cream colored rug.  And yet, this beautiful, absolutely normal moment is ever so fleeting.  Parker, 12 years old and dignified, her muzzle becoming salt and peppered with age, her tawny coat still sleek and lovely, her eyes of melted chocolate, has epilepsy, and the seizures come out of nowhere. Usually, they too are fleeting, lasting 10 minutes at most.  Scary, but short.  As she lies on her side, her legs begin to race as if she is chasing a squirrel in her dreams.  Yet, it is darker … more nightmarish as she frantically runs through her consciousness.  She foams at the mouth and her muscles spasm, her breathing becomes scarily irregular and her heart of gold races, faster and then slower and then faster again.  She can’t hear us, or see us, as we gather and try to calm her, comfort her … anything.  Elsie is scared, and Dad tells me to take her outside, into the backyard.  But I am scared, too.  Out in the dark, I hear myself saying over and over, “It’s okay, it’s going to be okay, it’s okay.”  I wonder if I am saying it to Elsie or myself.  The pine tree that drapes low over the patio is a black shape above me, blocking out the sky.  Suddenly, I worry that Elsie wandered too far, I seem to forget that our backyard is fenced, and I am petrified that I am losing her, too.   “Elsie? Elsie puppy? Come!”  Suddenly, the branches above me shudder violently and a dark shape flies out almost to fast to see.  I swear I jump two feet to my left, and I can still feel what I felt at that moment:  it was the first time in my little life that I had ever really been scared.  I wanted to go back in the house, back to the lit living room filled with the people closest to my heart.  But that room was not safe now, either … I was stuck in an in-between place, and I did not know where to go.   

*long distance relationship* 

You read about it in storybooks.  Once upon a time starts the first sentence, the “O” scrawled out in cursive so grandiose that it is barely recognizable.  But, I think that one of the many comforts of a fairytale is that you know it is “O”, and thus, it is.  I know that most people roll their eyes at happily ever afters, saying  that they are children’s dreams and nothing else; however, that all can be changed by a single experience (whether it is an experience of your own, or one you see unfold within another’s life).  Meeting a single person can drastically change the direction of your existence, and it happens so wonderfully quick.  I know I am young.  And rather innocent, really.  But I also know what my heart feels when I look at him, and I know how strong love is.  It can be seen in a spark when your eyes meet the first time, or in the quiet moments when you start to hear each others’ souls.  It is so strong that it can change how you see the world – enhance it – and fill you up from your toes all the way to the very top of your head.  Distance means nothing to love.  Separation means nothing when you know that you get to see each other soon, oh so soon.  It is hard, it hurts sometimes, and the longing to be together-together is so great that sometimes you feel like the aching inside might pressurize your heart, yet every second is worth it because you love each other.  Love is a story.  A fairytale.  A forever.  And this, this is mine: 

Have You Ever?

Have you ever been in a long distance relationship?
Have you ever felt like flying as you stood on the top of a mountain?
Have you ever read more than one book in a day?
Have you ever watched helplessly as your dog dies of a seizure?
Have you ever seen God?
Have you ever read poetry to a garden?
Have you ever truly seen and felt the magic of Christmastime?
Have you ever been published?
Have you ever gotten back on the horse, after falling off?
Have you ever gone pheasant hunting in the fall?
Have you ever explored an attic filled with memories?
Have you ever skied into a forest service cabin for the weekend?

Google Docs Response: Living in a Cloud

I never would have imagined that one of my first college classes would be anything but sitting in a classroom every morning, energized by the joy of academia and English Breakfast tea, wielding pen and paper.  And yet, here I sit typing away on Writing 101's forum of choice, courtesy of Google.  It is different, but different is a wonderful thing, and always something worth trying.  I think that the concept of "Cloud Computing" is a logical and practical one, and I am glad that the classroom setting is beginning to adopt it.  The idea that all of my writings, musings, and assignments will be stored in an effervescent cloud that floats over the world wide web seems so fantastical to me; perhaps I romanticize it too much, but I like thinking of my homework raining down from the cloudy heavens and being deposited into whatever computer I may be sitting in front of at that current point in time. I am really looking forward to this class, because I love writing and I also love pushing and challenging myself, seeing where my words can take me (and where I can take them!).  Perhaps incorporating Cloud technology will in turn elevate my writing to new heights!