Chapter 12 Question 3

This whole week we have been evaluating everything we see and hear through the scientific process. When using this process of making a hypothesis and testing and using observations, we might have to change our hypothesis based on what we see. This leads me to my post about criteria for evaluating a scientific hypothesis. I think this is really important because we need a solid and well-reasoned hypothesis to begin with. First we need to decide if the problem we are trying to figure out is relevant. Next we see if it is consistent with other theories that are already tested and established. We also need to make sure our hypothesis is in the simplest for we can put it in. This is important so that there is not gray area, it must be clear. Next we have to be able to test our hypothesis and uncover any falsifiable objections. Lastly we can then decide if our hypothesis can be used to predict other outcomes to similar events. 

Chapter 12 Question 2

Drawing an incorrect conclusion based on observation alone is like judging a book by its cover. Without knowing the substance behind that cover, you will never really know if your observation was right. I think the most extreme example of this would be the judgments we have about other people. For me, I ran into this issue while working at one of my jobs. A new girl was hired and I was in charge of training her. She moved to my town from SoCal, and was extremely wealthy, and extremely spoiled. I was not excited nor motivated to work with her but I had no choice. After training her for a few days, I realized that yes she had never worked hard a day in her life, but she wanted to try, and she was willing to work as hard as anyone else. We are really great friends now! These little facts I learned about her lead me to a really incorrect conclusion. I was able to discover that my observation was misleading by actually getting to know her. My hypothesis was wrong and testing through my experience brought me to a different conclusion then I had originally anticipated.

Chapter 12 Question 1

"Luck will definitely be on your side today! Review your budget carefully, you will find that you have a lot more money to play around with than you thought you did. However, before you run right out to the mall to spend it all, think about that one big ticket item that you've been saving up for. This extra money could go a long way toward getting said item in your hands. Think long term with this windfall. Hold off spending it until it can really be used in a powerful way."

My horoscope today is extremely accurate because I am about to put down a deposit on a car. Budgeting is a huge part of my life right at the moment! However, on most days the Pisces horoscopes do not match up well with me because I generally am not very Pisces-like. Since horoscopes are so vague and try to encompass so many people's lives into a few statements, it creates a lot of gray area and could have a lot of falsifiable events. For example, a person that does not have income, they have no real control of the funds, therefore they could now be lucky in their review of their budget. A situation like this would falsify this horoscope. In my case, this specific prediction cannot be falsified because it discusses saving money, and luck. Both of these topics are extremely broad yet happen to apply to me this time.

Chapter 11 Question 3

This week I wanted to focus on my blog post of analyzing and the interpretation of media messages. I think since the media is a huge part of most aspects of our lives, we should be able to pick and choose what we believe is the truth out of those messages. THiNK gives us steps to follow to analyze the media message we are confronted with to then decide for ourselves whether it is something valuable. These are great tips since there is a lot of biased material out there in all types of media. First we need to consider who created the message, what is the purpose of the message and what techniques were used to attract and hold the attention of the audience. Next, it is important to notice what values and points of view are represented and what your own reaction was to the message. The reaction that you had needs to be analyzed too to decide if it was reasonable and well informed as well. Next we need to think of how others would interpret the message, if it is biased, and if the message has good reasoning and facts. Lastly, the possible effects of the message on individuals and society need to be considered. If we use these steps we are sure to be able to critically think about media and their messages.

On a different note... In the book it says President Obama has 8 million Facebook followers. Now that number is up to 33 million! 

Chapter 11 Question 2

Brook Sadler is an assistant professor and she strongly believes that Internet (and all types of) plagiarism is wrong and that it undermines the educational system. There is also, Russell Hunt another professor that sees Internet plagiarism as an indicator that the education system is in need of a change. He wants to create a system that revolves more around “active learning” rather then the old model, which is comprised of research papers and literary essays. I think that both made a great argument for their side of the issue. I do believe that Sadler is correct that cheating should not be accepted in the educational system, however I also support Hunt in the sense that the education system is out of date and needs to catch up with the times. As the chapter discusses, media and technology are constantly changing and improving our ability to gain information at a push of a button. I think that Sadler is ignoring this fact while Hunt is accepting it too easily. There needs to be a happy medium of incorporating the Internet and all it’s information, but not abusing it nor using it as a substitution for knowledge.

Chapter 11 Question 1

Media is ALL around us. It is continuing to become more integrated in every part of our lives. From our alarm clock that wakes us up with morning news, to having a constant reminder of all media in our pocket in the form of a cell phone. I think that having more of a global perspective is allowing us to make decisions based on what the media tells us is happening from all parts of the world. Technology and the spread of media that way, has us picking and choosing what we believe in we want to follow. The most recent media experience I had would be the election and their campaign. With all the information out there about Romney and President Obama, it takes time to choose which media outlets you want to get your information from. Being very up to date with the policies that each presidential candidate held allowed for me to create my opinion after searching through all the media and being bombarded with their ads. I cannot say that the media changed my opinion on who I wanted to vote for, but it did solidify my choice in my own mind.

Chapter 10 Question 3

This week I chose the topic of product placement. It is crazy to think that just because an item is in a movie or tv show (with the logo facing out of course) that’ll make a person want to buy that product. It is similar with grocery stores that the “end caps” are the most coveted spots in the grocery store, second to that are the eye level shelf. There is always a scene in a movie or show that the character pulls up in their car right to the camera so you can have a big screen full of their car’s emblem. Product placement is everywhere! It can be their soda can with a Pepsi or Coke label or a laptop with a glowing white apple facing the camera. In all of those cases product placement was thoroughly thought out so that the company could have their logo and name get out into the public.

Chapter 10 Question 2

The argument between Wootan and Liodice is whether or not the government should regulate the advertisements aimed towards children regarding their food. Wootan believes and makes an argument for creating more strict regulations and having the government step in to change the way advertisements are handled concerning children’s food. He thinks this is important because of the rising numbers of obese children. Liodice is on the other side of the spectrum and does not think that marketing strategies should be regulated by the government regardless if it is concerning children’s food or not. He thinks that it is an issue of freedom of speech, and that needs to be protected above anything else. Liodice also acknowledges Wootan’s concerns but in the end gives a stronger argument and backs his own beliefs up more. I think that Liodice did a better job at making his point because I do not think it is the food manufacturers responsibility to make sure their customers eat well-balanced meals. Most things bad for you in excess, and a little junk food is usually part of every kid’s childhood. It’s the parent’s, not an outside company’s, responsibility to make sure that junk food is not the majority of their children’s diet.

Chapter 10 Question 1

I think the the most common marketing strategy that I experienced in the past week is brand recognition. Every company has a brand and they all try to make it stand out and stick in your mind. As mentioned in the book, Apple products use this strategy, and it works! I have been used to seeing the iPhone commercials with the hand holding the phone and going through different processes, but the iPod commercial went in a different direction. It went back to their roots (if you can recall the white iPod on a person blacked out, against a colorful background) it has the same feel. I think that this is smart for Apple to keep with certain themes in their commercials because people do recognize their brands so easily. A type of marketing towards the impulse buyer to me seems the least effective. I am not an impulse buyer at all so that is why putting candy near the register or having time to look around in a drug store while getting a prescription filled is not an effective marketing strategy for me. However,this strategy is most likely very effective for some people since there is probably a large percentage of people that are impulsive buyers.