Engl
1020 Critical Thinking and Argumentation, sec 15, Spring 2014, O'Donnell
[ Policies ] [
Calendar ] [ Readings
]
Calendar
last update: April 25, 2014
Class meets MWF 11:30am-12:25pm, in Burleson 303.
RRE = Reading
Response Essay.
Week 1
(Jan
17)
Week 2 (MLK
DAY; Jan 22-24)
Wednesday
- RRE 1 due.
- "All You Can Eat: A
Journey Through a Seafood Fantasy." By Jim Carrier. Orion Magazine,
March/ April 2009. www.orionmagazine.org/index.php/articles/article/4395/
- "The Killer in the
Pool." By Tim Zimmerman. Outside, Friday, July 30, 2010. www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/nature/The-Killer-in-the-Pool.html. (Click here
for a printable pdf file.)
- "The Last Distinction?: Talking to the animals." By Benjamin Hale. Harper's
Magazine, August 2012, p65-70. (Cached
here.)
Friday
- "Flesh of Your Flesh:
Should you eat meat?" [review of J. Foer's Eating Animals]. By Elizabeth
Kolbert. The New Yorker, November 9,
2009. www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/books/2009/11/09/091109crbo_books_kolbert. (Click here
for a cached version.)
- "Should You Eat Chicken? [Contributing Op-Ed
Writer]." By Mark Bittman. The New York Times, October 15, 2013. www.nytimes.com/2013/10/16/opinion/bittman-should-you-eat-chicken.html
- "Consider the Lobster." By David Foster Wallace.
Gourmet Magazine, August 2004. www.gourmet.com/magazine/2000s/2004/08/consider_the_lobster.
(Click here for a cached
version.)
Week 3
(Jan
27-31)
Monday
- RRE 2 due.
- "I Want My Prostate Back:
The urologist diagnosed his prostate cancer. A high-tech robot removed the
diseased organ. Then came two common aftereffects: sexual dysfunction, and
nagging questions. Was it all a monstrous mistake?" By Laurence Roy
Stains. Photographs by Nigel Cox. Men's Health, January 28, 2010. www.menshealth.com/health/coping-prostate-cancer
- "Relationship Violence:
The Secret That Kills 4 Women a Day." By Liz Brody. Glamour Magazine,
May 2011. www.glamour.com/tell-somebody/2011/05/relationship-violence-the-secret-that-kills-4-women-a-day.
Click here for a cached
version.
Wednesday
- "The Teeming Metropolis of You: Every day, a host of
bacteria are at war within you." By
Brendan Buhler. California Magazine, Fall 2011.
alumni.berkeley.edu/california-magazine/fall-2011-good-fight/teeming-metropolis-you
- "The T-Cell Army: Can the body’s immune response help
treat cancer?" By Jerome
Groopman. The New Yorker, April 23, 2012.
www.newyorker.com/reporting/2012/04/23/120423fa_fact_groopman (Click here for a
cached version.)
Friday
- "Genetically Modified Forest Planned for U.S.
Southeast: International Paper and MeadWestvaco are planning to transform
plantation forests of the southeastern U.S. by replacing native pine with
genetically engineered eucalyptus." By Paul Voosen. Scientific American,
Jan 29, 2010. www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=eucalyptus-genetically-modified-pine-tree-southwest-forest
Week 4 (Feb
3-7)
Monday
- RRE 3 due.
- "Why Not Frack?" By
Bill McKibben. The New York Review of Books. March 8, 2012. http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2012/mar/08/why-not-frack/
- "Fracking Water: It’s Just So Hard to
Clean." Blog post by Bill
Chameides, October 4, 2013. At "The
Great Energy Challenge" subsection of the Environment section at nationalgeographic.com, the website of the
National Geographic Society. energyblog.nationalgeographic.com/2013/10/04/fracking-water-its-just-so-hard-to-clean/
- "Fracking
explained: opportunity or danger."
Youtube. Running time: 5:03. Published on Sep 3, 2013. Posted by Kurzgesagt, affiliated with Phillip
Dettmer, a freelance Information Designer based in Munich, Germany. www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uti2niW2BRA
Wednesday
- Annotated bib, topic proposal due: Write a memo to me and
your classmates, in which you propose an area of inquiry for your annotated
bib. Answer the following
questions: 1) Why are you interested in
the topic--what personal connection do you have to it? 2) What have you read so far, related to that
topic? Also include 3) a detailed,
generous, specific working
title.
Friday
- "My Polluted Kentucky Home
[Op-Ed Contributor]." By Silas House. NY
Times online. February 19, 2011. www.nytimes.com/2011/02/20/opinion/20House.html
- "Officials Don’t Really Know How Dangerous the
Chemical Spilled in West Virginia Is: Authorities have virtually no way of
regulating many industrial chemicals. The latest spill could change
that." By Bryan Walsh. Time
Magazine online, Jan. 14, 2014. science.time.com/2014/01/14/how-dangerous-is-chemical-spilled-in-west-virginia/
Week 5
(Feb
10-14)
Monday
- RRE 4 due.
- "Margaret Atwood: Rachel Carson's Silent Spring, 50
years on." By Margaret Atwood. The Guardian [Manchester, England].
Friday, December 7, 2012. www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/dec/07/why-rachel-carson-is-a-saint
-
Rehabilitating Carson: Why do some people continue to hold Rachel Carson
responsible for millions of malaria deaths?" By John Quiggin. Prospect Magazine, May 24, 2008.
www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/magazine/rehabilitatingcarson/
-
Browse these two web sites:
- RachelWasWrong.org.
"Uncovering Silent Spring's Deadly Consequences," by the Competitive
Enterprise Institute
- ihr.org. "The Institute for Historical Review is
an independent educational research and publishing center that works to promote
peace, understanding and justice through greater public awareness of the past,
and especially socially-politically relevant aspects of twentieth-century
history."
Wednesday
- Bring
in at least one of the sources that you would like to use for your annotated
bib. We'll practice writing annotations
in class.
Friday
- Bring
in at least one more source (in addition to the one you brought on Wednesday)
that you would like to use for your annotated bib. We'll practice writing annotations in
class.
- Read
the annotated
bibliography assignment sheet for this class.
- Read
the following:
- "How to
Prepare an Annotated Bibliography."
Cornell University Library, Ithaca, New York. Last updated September 5, 2013. guides.library.cornell.edu/annotatedbibliography
- "Writing an Annotated
Bibliography." Lucy Scribner
Library, Skidmore College, Saratoga Springs, New York. lib.skidmore.edu/library/index.php/li371-annotated-bib
- "Writing an Annotated
Bibliography." A handout adapted
from Writing Across the Curriculum,
by Sandra Nagy, and posted at the Writing Center website at Southern Illinois
University, Carbondale Illinois. write.siu.edu/Handouts/Writing%20an%20Annotated%20Bibliography.pdf
- "Annotated Bibliography
Samples." Online Writing Lab at
Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana.
owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/614/03/
Week 6 (Feb
17-21)
Monday
- Draft of annotated
bib due. Bring 2 extra copies (3 copies, total) for
writing groups.
- Browse the UNC-Chapel Hill
Writing Center Handouts on Writing Groups: http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/writing-groups/.
Read "Responding to Other People's Writing"-- writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/writing-groups/responding-to-other-peoples-writing/--
and read "Reacting to Other People's Responses to Your Writing"--
writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/writing-groups/reacting-to-other-peoples-responses-to-your-writing/--at
the UNC Writing Center website.
Wednesday
Read
"Fight Over Minimum Wage Illustrates Web of Industry Ties." By Eric
Lipton. The New York Times online, February. 9, 2014. www.nytimes.com/2014/02/10/us/politics/fight-over-minimum-wage-illustrates-web-of-industry-ties.html
Read
"Cancer World: The making of a modern disease" [Review of The
Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer by Siddhartha
Mukherjee]. By Steven Shapin. The New
Yorker online, November 8, 2010. www.newyorker.com/arts/critics/books/2010/11/08/101108crbo_books_shapin. (Click here for a
cached version.)
Friday
- Review essay, topic proposal due: Write a memo to me and
your classmates, in which you propose the title of a book or full-length documentary
film you would like to review, for the 1000-1500 word review essay which is due
on March 31. Include the annotation
which you will include with the citation for this book, in your bibliography.
Week 7
(Feb
24-28)
This week, you're continuing work on the annotated bib.
Wednesday
Read "Review of the must-read book: Merchants of Doubt: How a
handful of scientists obscured the truth on issues from smoke to global warming."
By John Atcheson. Posted July 14, 2010, at "Climate Progress," the climate
section edited by Joe Romm at ThinkProgress.org, a blog site sponsored by the
Center for American Progress Action Fund, a nonpartisan, liberal
organization. thinkprogress.org/romm/2010/07/14/206422/merchants-of-doubt-naomi-oreskes-review/
Week 8
(March 3-7)
Monday
- Annotated
bibliography due, revised for a
grade.
Wednesday
- Read "A Valuable Reputation: After Tyrone Hayes said that a
chemical was harmful, its maker pursued him" [Annals of Science]. By
Rachel Aviv. The New Yorker Magazine online, February 10, 2014. www.newyorker.com/reporting/2014/02/10/140210fa_fact_aviv
- RRE 5 due.
Friday
- Class cancelled! Read the book which you'll review for the
next writing assignment.
SPRING
BREAK! March 10-14
Week 9
(March
17-21)
Monday
Read the following reviews:
- "When
computers take over: What if the current exponential increase in
information-processing power could continue unabated?" [Review of The Singularity is Near: When Humans Transcend Biology, by Ray
Kurzweil.) By Paul Davies. Nature,
volume 437 (23 March 2006): p421-422.
Posted at Kurzweil's "Singularity" website: www.singularity.com/When_computers_take_over.pdf. Accessed March 2014.
- "The Mind
of a Disease" [review of The Emperor
of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer, by Siddhartha Mukherjee]. By Jonathan Weiner. New York
Times Sunday Book Review, November 12, 2010. www.nytimes.com/2010/11/14/books/review/Weiner-t.html. (Click here
for a cached version.)
- RRE 6 due.
Wednesday
Read the following reviews:
- "Our Debt to the Dog. Book Review." [Review of Our Debt to the Dog: How the
Domestic Dog Helped Shape Human Societies, by Bryan Cummins.] By Don Messerschmidt. Posted on September 22, 2013. LiteraryDogs.
literarydogs.com/2013/09/22/our-debt-to-the-dog-book-review/
- "'Under The
Surface,' Marcellus Shale Book, Joins Other Fracking Stories." [Review of Under the Surface: Fracking, Fortunes, and the Fate of the Marcellus
Shale, by Tom Wilber.] No author
listed. Huffington Post, April 9, 2012.
www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/09/under-the-surface-book_n_1411936.html
Friday
Read
"Unsentimental Education."
[Review of Breaking Night: A Memoir of Forgiveness, Survival, and My
Journey From Homeless to Harvard, by Liz Murray.) By Tara McKelvey. New
York Times, Sunday Book Review online.
September 12, 2010. www.nytimes.com/2010/09/12/books/review/McKelvey-t.html
Week
10
(March 24-28)
Monday
- Draft of review essay, 1000-1500 words, due.
Bring 2 extra copies (3 copies, total) for writing groups.
Wednesday
Read "The Sixth Extinction, by Elizabeth Kolbert:
Review." By Jeet Heer. National Post, online, February 14,
2014. arts.nationalpost.com/2014/02/14/the-sixth-extinction-by-elizabeth-kolbert-review/
Friday
- Class cancelled! (I will be at an academic conference.) Work on your review essay, which is due
Monday.
Week
11 (March
31-Apr 4)
Monday
- Bring one copy of the latest version of your review
essay. We will use it to do an outline/
organization workshop in class.
Wednesday
- Review essay, 1000-1500 words, due.
Friday
- Reading Proposal Memo due. CLICK
HERE FOR READING PROPOSAL MEMO INSTRUCTIONS.
Week
12
(Apr 7-11)
Monday
Read the following:
- How to Write a Research Question – George Mason
University -- http://writingcenter.gmu.edu/?p=307
- Developing Strong Thesis Statements – Purdue OWL -- https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/588/01/
- Writing a Research Paper – Purdue OWL
-- https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/658/1/
Memo due: In a memo to me and your classmates, write a
draft of your research question, and a working title for your research essay.
Wednesday
Bring to class a working outline (or "informal
outline").
We'll work on drafting your research essay, in class.
Friday
Bring to class a copy of your most useful source.
We'll continue to work on drafting your research essay, in
class.
Week
13 (Apr
14-16, Good Friday)
Monday
Draft of your research essay, 1500-2000 words, due.
Bring 2 extra copies (3 copies, total) for writing groups.
Wednesday
Read this
article: Seamus McGraw. "Is Fracking Safe? The Top 10
Controversial Claims About Natural Gas Drilling." Popular
Mechanics online, no date (approximately December 2013). www.popularmechanics.com/science/energy/coal-oil-gas/top-10-myths-about-natural-gas-drilling-6386593
Friday
Read this article: Paul Solotaroff. "In the Belly of the Beast: Animal
Cruelty is the Price We Pay for Cheap Meat." Rolling
Stone Magazine, online, December 10, 2013.
www.rollingstone.com/feature/belly-beast-meat-factory-farms-animal-activists
Week
14
(Apr 21-25)
Monday
Read the following:
- "How to Read a Scientific Paper," by Phillip
Scheuerman, ETSU Professor of Environmental Health -- http://www.etsu.edu/intopform/How%20to%20read%20a%20scientific%20paper.pdf
- Jacquelyn C Campbell. "Health consequences of intimate partner
violence." The Lancet, Volume 359, Issue 9314 (13 April 2002): pages
1331-1336. www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(02)08336-8/abstract
Wednesday
Bring to class your revised
outline, and your complete
bibliography, as well as your most recent iteration of your research essay.
Also, bring your handbook to class, and review the last two
chapters under the "MLA" tab:
"MLA 4: Documenting sources" (beginning on p440), and
"MLA 5: Manuscript format; sample paper" (beginning on p481).
Read Peter Eisler,
"Deadly 'superbugs' invade U.S. health care facilities." USA
Today online, March 6, 2013. www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2012/11/29/bacteria-deadly-hospital-infection/1727667/
Friday
Read Bethany McLean, "Book
review: ‘The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon,’ By Brad
Stone." The Washington Post, online, October 15, 2013. www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/book-review-the-everything-store-jeff-bezos-and-the-age-of-amazon-by-brad-stone/2013/10/15/185c6c3e-34cc-11e3-be86-6aeaa439845b_story.html
Week
15 (Apr
28-May 2)
Monday
- Research essay due: Bring to class one printed copy with your
name, my name, and the course section number removed. In place of your name, use your
initials. These essays will be
"group graded," this summer, as part of a course assessment project,
by a team of Engl 1020 instructors.
Wednesday
- Review the readings from the past two weeks. We will write about and discuss these, as we review
for the final exam.
Final exam
period: Monday, May 5, 3:50-5:50pm.