Blogs

 Is doubting the path to finding the “truth”?

 Why Copyright Law Lets Britney Spears Sell Dolls that Look Like Her

(and Why This is OK for Our Economy)

Where do we go from your last paper?

 She was everywhere.  Scattered on my floor, under the seat in my mother’s car, with my bathtub toys, and occasionally in the big blue tub labeled BARBIE.  At the age of five I had entered Barbie World and the ensuing invasion of Barbie and cohorts dominated my life for the next two years.  My Christmas list from Kindergarten asked for a Barbie house, Barbie boat, Barbie car, and of course the absolutely essential Barbie Plane.  Apparently I was not alone, Mary F.

There are certain ways to argue a point in order to get someone to listen to what you have to say, and even grow to believe you. The bigger the lie or the bigger the change that a person must make in order to adjust to what you’ve told them; the harder it will be for you to convince them. People are more apt to believe you when there’s an immediate threat being posed, when they aren’t as knowledgeable about the subject, or when you have a monopoly on the information. People also take into account the reliability of the person trying to convince them of something.

       In our dictionary exercise, one of the definitions that I found particularly interesting, was the OED definition of reality: The quality or state of being real. What I found to be most interesting was how the words used by the OED to define reality could themselves be defined in multiple ways. I found this aspect of definitions to illustrate how it is that language is limiting in that one words cannot fully explain or describe something. Quality as pointed out by one of our class members, can have multiple meanings depending on the context. For instance, “quality”, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, can be defined as the “degree of excellence”.

I experimented and used a lot of photos and graphics in this post which serendip isn't always 100% on board with so I've posted it online. 

Comments welcome! 

 Thrill of Disaster, Thrill of Fight or Flight

A professor asked me at the beginning of the year why I enjoyed horror films so much. I watch them regularly, of all different qualities and sub-genres, and I plan on writing my senior English thesis on zombie films and the human unconscious. Why would I want to watch such terrible, terrifying, and often gruesome narratives—especially when the “real” world is disturbing enough on its own?

Anonymity, Authenticity and Healing:

Secrets of Truth-telling Revealed

There are two kinds of secrets: those we keep from each other, and those we keep from ourselves.

--Frank Warren