Final Essay Due 10/16-10/18!

Students,
Thank you to those who have already turned in your final essays.

Those of you who have yet to turn in your essay, remember that you can email it sooner than the final deadline of Friday's class (10/18/13).

MAKE SURE YOUR ESSAY INCLUDES A WORKS CITED (BIBLIOGRAPHY) SECTION IN MLA FORMAT!  I have referred you to the Purdue Online Writing Lab for formatting/info guidelines (https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/).  Please be sure to check that you have included this before you give me your final essay.  If I can't verify your information, it will negatively impact your essay's possible score.

KEEP IN MIND:

Your essay must include an INTRODUCTION, SUPPORTIVE PARAGRAPHS and a CONCLUSION.

You must include MLA formatted in-text citations and a Works Cited/Bibliography section.  (These are not the same thing.  Make sure you have done both.)

Your paper should be double-spaced, 12-point font with 1-inch margins.

Include an original title.

Make sure your information is on the paper.  (If I don't know who wrote it, I won't be able to give you the grade you earned.)

Good work and good luck.

Up for discussion... (10/11/13)

Please read and respond to the following article.  Use complete sentences and good grammar!  Your individual responses should be at least a paragraph long.  Your responses to one another can be any length.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/07/switzerland_0_n_4038031.html?utm_hp_ref=mostpopular

Samurai Jack 2 & 3

The first episode of Samurai Jack we watched today was "Jack and the Scotsman."  Write a response to the episode.



We are introduced to one of the assassins after Jack in "The Tale of X-9."  Does your perspective change?  Is Jack still a "good guy"?  Is the assassin really a "bad guy"?  What do you think of Jack, of X-9 and of the episode?  Does the point of view of the storytelling have an effect on how you interpret the story?

Both responses are due at the beginning of class on Friday.  Be sure to have your assignments ready to turn in!

Samurai Jack 1

Here's the link to the Samurai Jack episode we watched today, "Jack and the Ultra-Robots":  Click me!

Remember, you want to link what you see to real world issues and events.  Respond to the episode.  This is a minimum of one double-spaced page, DUE AT THE BEGINNING OF CLASS ON WEDNESDAY!

EXTRA CREDIT: Divide by 0

As an extra credit option, please create your own original short work of fiction around the scenario of dividing by zero.  Browse the internet for additional context if you are unfamiliar with this concept.

Write in complete sentences, using good grammar and mechanics, and fill at least two pages (double-spaced).  Email it to me at n.brooksdevita@hccs.edu or turn in a printed or handwritten copy by Monday, October 7, 2013.

Have fun! 

Regarding Attendance

Dear Students,
This week, attendance has been quite low. 

Please be aware that absences in excess of 6 hours of instruction (that's 3 classes) may result in you being marked as non-attending.  If you have not discussed your attendance issues with me and worked out a solution, you may find this negatively affects your student record. 

Students who receive a failing grade for excessive absences will have an FX on their transcripts.  STUDENTS WHO RECEIVE AN FX MUST REPAY THEIR FINANCIAL AID AND MAY HAVE TROUBLE OBTAINING IT IN FUTURE.  Please don't do this to yourself. 

Be in touch with any changes and emergencies.  You can reach me at n.brooksdevita@hccs.edu.

Up for discussion... (10/4/2013)

Imagine that you are the creator of the newest letter of the English alphabet.  What is the letter you have invented?  What are its uses?  What does it sound like?  What does it look like?  What are the rules that apply to it? 

Be original.  Do not use existing letters from other systems.  Use complete sentences and good grammar!

Prep work for Friday!

Decide on at least three points of interest within your topic that you would like to explore.  What are the issues that have particularly caught your attention?  Are there articles or other resources that support your stance on the topic?  What might you use to illustrate your opinions and explain your topic to a reader?

Once you have identified the three points, start collecting evidence to support them.  Are there quotes that will express what you want?  Maybe there are statistics that back you up.  Perhaps, your point will be supported best by relating a personal story or observation of your own.  Please make sure that you have collected some example to support each point you make.

Be ready with this research for the 5-paragraph workshop on Friday!

Up for discussion... (9/23/2013)

Please take a look at (try the recipe) and discuss the following blog entry from Gastronomeria:

"Saturday, January 23, 2010

A Meal With Haiti in Mind

Often people from less wealthy countries are in a situation where the only meal they get is based on beans and rice. Looking into the nutritional value of those economic meals, we find that they are very well balanced and, as I said before: Balance is everything!
Last night, while thinking about the famine that the people of Haiti must be going through, I cooked a meal that was super economical, easy to prepare and rendidor, a source of bounty. I cooked one bag of black beans, boiled 2 cups of long grain brown rice, fried 2 sweet potatoes cut in the shape of long french fries in an inexpensive blend of soy and olive oil, and fried two thin-sliced plantains. I topped the black beans and brown rice with queso fresco and wedges of avocado and had an island dinner for 4 while Mafusser read to us "Please, Malese", a Haitian trickster folk tale. The leftover beans were used for breakfast the next day.
It is unfortunate that, as I'm typing, thousands of Haitians do not have this economic meal in their stomachs, but we can manage our personal economy by preparing meals like this. Instead of splurging on a fancy dinner, we can help by sending financial support to Haitian relief funds and by praying for their spiritual and material rebuilding. Remain curious my friends!

Posted by Pressman  at 6:47 PM"

Up for discussion... (9/16/2013)

Please read the following news item about a rejected baby elephant at the Shendiaoshan Wild Animal Preserve.  Feel free to respond below and be ready to discuss in class.

"Implications of America's New Gilded Age"

http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2013-09-12/implications-americas-new-gilded-age

Please listen to the audio or read the transcript of "Implications of America's New Gilded Age," broadcast by NPR on the Diane Rehm Show on September 12, 2013.  What are the participants talking about?  What are your thoughts about and reactions to the subject?

Use the comments section below to respond.  While I want you to use correct grammar and mechanics, I will be reading for content; please focus on what you understand, think and why.

Getting to know you...

Howdy, Neighbors!
Please use the comments section of this post to get to know one another.  You can talk about just about anything.  We might play a round of "It" or something. 
Have fun! ;)

Still,
The Master of the Universe

Greetings!

Greetings, Minions!

This will be your class blog for the rest of the course.  Please make note of the web address and subscribe to the blog in order to receive notifications by email.

Sincerely,
The Master of the Universe