Bibliography

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A Forest Returns Movie

Today in class we watched a movie called A forest Returns, a success story of Ohio's only national forest. This movie was quite interesting and very informative. I never really knew much about the Ohio's national forest and I have lived in Ohio my whole life. The man describing this information was Mr. Anderson, he had great insight on the Ohio forest because he watched it develop over 50 years. He started the story by telling us how there was a great depression and it was hurting everyone. The government decided to make new programs allowing Americans to gain new jobs. One program was basically planting trees and creating a forest in Ohio. I am glad that the government decided to do this because it preserved some of our natural environment. Mr Anderson always said that forestry men would go to farms and buy the land off them to persevered so it wouldn't be destroyed. All of these things have provided the forest today.

In closing of the movie, I felt very happy for the old man and what he had accomplished. I like this movie a lot and I felt it related very much to the book we just finished, Lost Mountain. All of these stories about the environment have really got me thinking about doing something. I want the forests and mountains to still be around so my kids someday can enjoy them. I think that everyone needs to realize if we don't do something now, or make a change, we will not have this nature down the line.

Guest Speaker

On Monday in class, we had a quest speaker come in, David Maywhoor. He was from the Buckeye Forest council and he gave a interesting presentation about forests. I found this very relatable to our class because we had just read the book Lost Mountain, and the issue that were dealt with in the book were just like the issue he was describing. David told us that he was working with this council to help save the forest in Ohio. I find this extrmely cool. I know that we are destroying our forest and to know that people out there are actually doing something to stop this, makes me quite happy. I like this organization and the other organizations he mention that help protect our forests and environment.

One thing I did find pretty cool was the bugs that he had talked about that were destroying wood and trees. I never really knew about these and hearing that they were out there and how you could not transfer wood from certain county was quite interesting. These bugs are also destroying the forest but their is nothing we can really do about them. Knowing this makes me really think about what I can do to help keeps the forests around. Since there are so many factors we can't monitor maybe doing something like David Maywhoor and the buckeye forest council is doing could really help the forest. I hope they continue doing this and saving our enviroment because if we lose the forest we will have no natural beauty. We will lose many plant and animal species and these things could be really useful to us.

Research Topic

While searching for a topic do to for my research paper, I found many interesting environmental issues. One very popular issue is global warming. I think I want to take a look further into this issue. There is so much information provided for this topic. I am not sure what aspects I want to focus on yet but I have some ideas. Global warming is the increase of average temperature of the earth's atmosphere, with an sustained increase it can affect the climate causing it to change. Global warming is caused by greenhouse effect. Looking at this definition makes me wonder what all causes greenhouse effect and what these climate changes could possibly do to the earth years from now. I feel people do not really care what it is doing because the bad effects will occur so much later, that they will not be here and it won't affect them, but to me it will. Doing something about global warming now can help the future earth. I do not really know much about this topic but I am interested in researching it further and learning about ways to stop it.

When reading information about global warming I found a website that had many interesting facts and even stated that the effects of global warming are showing now in our climate. It said that average temperature has risen. This is kind of scary, thinking that if global warming keeps increases that the earth's temperature could keep getting hotter. The temperature of the earth could keep rising and effect other things like animals and plants. I know that some of these things are already happening and it could really effect out earth. I am interesting in doing research on this topic and further discussing some things I could focus on in my paper. I think I might focus on these effects and ways to slow or even stop global warming in my paper. I am not positive if I'm going to be focusing on this but these are a few ideas I have. Any comments?

Lost Mountain #3

In the last part of Lost Mountain, Wendell Berry makes a distinction between a “rational” and a “sympathetic“mind. To me there is a huge distinction between them. For one, a rational mind is the intelligence in mankind to make decisions logically and think through them. I would then define having a sympathetic mind as having a feeling of compassion or you identify with somebody. What you hear affects you and you feel sympathy for that person. There are many examples in the third part of Lost Mountain where Reece exhibits having a sympathetic mind. He tells many stories about the people in the area who either have lost someone in their family from a flash flood or falling boulder, or are too scared to even sleep at night because something could fall or damage their house any minute. These stories really make you have a sympathetic mind because you feel bad for them. Erik Reece wants you to feel this way with him so we will have the urge to change the way coal is extracted. Another example in the book that Erik portrays with a sympathetic mind is the idea of poverty. He tells you that most people in the area of the coal mining are very poor. They do not receive money from the coal companies or have jobs from the coal companies. There is a strain on other jobs in their area also because all they land is basically destroyed. Finally he says that all these people want to work and not be poor, but they have no way to make money. This information is very sad. I feel bad for these people and hearing it from a sympathetic view, makes me want to do something about it.

There are many quotes in the conclusion chapter that are significant. One quote that actually stuck out at me was, In his 1935 book, The Creed of Kinship, Salt Declared,” The basis of any real morality must be the sense of kinship between all living things.” (Pg. 241) This quote that Henry Salt had in his book, and that Erik Reece reframed in his book really got me thinking. I like this quote because it is very true. We need to start treating the environment like a thing and treat it the way it deserves. All of us humans are just destroying it instead of making a kinship. If we stopped destroying the land and found better ways to extract the resources we need, we might be able to use the environment to our advantage. In this book, Lost Mountain, Erik expresses the affects of mountaintop removal and how it is destroying our beautiful land. I never knew about this way of extracting coal but I am glad that I now know some of the information. It might not affect me personally but it is affecting others and I want to do something about it. I urge the government and the coal companies to start researching or working on a new way of extracting coal. The environment needs to be preserved and if we keep destroying it there will be none left.

lost mountain #2

After reading the next section of Lost Mountain, a lot of information sticks in my head. One thing that Erik Reece mentioned and talked about that really stuck with me was the fact that many animals and plants are going extinct because of what we’re doing to the environment and their habitats. In the chapter, what is a flying squirrel worth, he tells us a story about a time he went with a naturalist, Jim Krupa to check out the flying squirrels and their environment. This story really interested me. Jim Krupa would set up traps all around this area and try to catch flying squirrels. He then would release them and watch them fly. Erik Reece really enjoyed this and shared in detail what had occurred. During this trapping expedition the naturalist told Erik that many animals and plants are going extinct because their habitats are being destroyed. To me this is a horrible fact. I feel that most things we are doing can be prevented but no one is willing to actually try and find a better way of extracting things from the environment. For example, mountain top removal destroys a lot of the environment and kills many trees, plants and animals, but we keep doing it. I do not understand how these coal companies can just go in and destroy nature and not even care about the animals and plants. Jim Kurpa even told Erik that many plants that are going extinct actually contain anti-cancer components. Cancer is one of the main killers in the U.S. and we are actually killing plants that might be able to help us cure this disease. To me this is alarming. I never realized how many plants and animals were going extinct and dying off until I read this chapter. This information has made me really think about what people are doing to the environment for money. I feel that people should start thinking more about the other species in this world because they live here too. If we keep destroying them, we can lose out on a lot of species that could actually help us. People really need to consider finding a new ways to extract resources that is more environmentally friendly.

Lost Mountain #1

In starting off the book, Lost Mountain, I noticed that the author Erik Reece describes the mountains and the nature surrounding them as such beautiful landscapes. He really enjoys being around the mountains and you can see how important they are to him. To me this shows passion and for him to care about something so much, you can really see where his argument is coming from. Erik Reece is very upset that the coal mining companies are just destroying this land and the environment around the mountains with no feeling of regret. They remove the tops of the mountains to collect the coal but just waste the things they remove. They do not see what he sees. Erik Reece offers many reasons to why this area needs to be saved and why mountain top removal needs to be stopped. For one, he mentions the animals. The cerulean warbler, is one animal he talks about which is a bird who is almost extinct because of mountain top removal. This bird used to sing great melodies and now can hardly ever be heard because hardly any are left. Another reason he mentions mountain top removal should stop is because it destroys the habitat. To me this is a main reason why I think this should stop. Most of the environment is destroyed and never really returns back to normal. Animal’s homes are demolished and the land is not strong enough to hold up new habitats that are formed because it is so loosely packed. The last reason Erik Reece offered was the fact that this area is so diverse and rich. Letting coal companies comes in and destroy it is just environmentally wrong. This area should be untouched and preserved so people can admire its beauty.
Looking at all these reasons the author provides, I do agree with him. I feel that mountain top removal should be stopped and another solution for mining coal should be used. I think that these first few chapters provide a good argument and almost anyone could be persuaded to have mountain top removal stopped.

Clean Coal Websites

Looking at the two websites we were given about the idea of clean coal, I had many first impressions. The This is Reality website really caught my eye with the opening page. It had interesting facts with little animations of a bird flying. I thought this was funny. This was definitely a pro for this website because most people would react to it like I did and continue to read on. A con for this website would be that it might not be taken as serious as the American Power website because it makes fun of the idea. People might take offense to this and not want to read on. The second website America's Power didn't give me a good first impression. The website seemed boring and had a lot of text on the opening page. This is a con for the website because if people get bored they won’t read on. There is a pro to this website though, it does offer you information that can really help you understand what tpeople are trying to do to help make coal usage cleaner. Comparing the two website I am caught in the middle on which I prefer. I like the reality website only because it is entertaining and provides information in a humorous way, yet I like the American Power website because it provides information on how America is trying to change the coal usage and make it cleaner.

The stake in the debate of these two website is the idea that coal is used for almost all our energy in the U.S. and it is causing pollution and we aren’t stopping it or trying to fix the problem. On the American Power website, they are trying to come up with idea on how to make coal use less pollutant to the earth. This idea is called CC technology, which is basically research on how to make clean coal. The website offers a map and most states are trying out this research idea. The This is reality website is providing information to their viewers about the idea that there is no such things as clean coal. This is a Logos strategy because it provides you with reasons and evidence that there is nothing true about the idea of clean coal. The American Power website suggests to their viewer’s that we need to research the idea of clean coal and try to find a solution. It also provides information about the states on how much coal is being used and what each state is doing to stop this problem. This is both a logos strategy because again it provides reason and evidence and it is also an ethos strategy because the website seems credible and trustworthy.

Both website have the same audience which are people who are interested in the coal use in our country and people seeking information about clean coal and the ideas around it. I do not believe that the audiences are different. The websites provide coal information but just from different view points and people need to know both sides.

Both website provide many names and organizations that sponsor them. This really makes each website look credible. For example on the reality website, there is a list of “Reality Coalition Members” which you can view and learn more about the members. On American Power website, they have a page dedicated to who they are and what types of organizations are behind their idea. Both of these website seem credible to me and I feel that having this information on the website can really attract people.

Having emotional appeals on your website can really help your argument. Both website provide pathos. For example, the reality website shows facts with a bird flying into them with crossed out eyes. To me this means that the bird is dead because of all the coal use in the U.S. This appeals to me and makes me feel bad about all the coal we use. The second website, American Power provides videos of real life people and what they are doing to help make clean coal. This can be emotional and attract people too.

Comparing the visual expressions on each website, I feel the This is reality website is more effective. It provides more then one strategy (ethos, pathos &logos) to the audience and they will be more persuaded by it. On the other hand, the American Power website provides great information and wants to try and find a solution unlike the reality website. People might not see the visual expression in this website besides logos, but I feel they will be more open to it since it is trying to find a solution.

In the end, I feel that both website are persuasive on different ends. The reality website persuades their audience to believe that there is not such a thing as clean coal and they do provide information to back this up. The American Power website is also persuasive but is persuading their audience to believe that their could be a solution, we just need to do research. Both are different but to me both are persuasive.

About Me

Hey there, My name is Chelsea Stoner and I am currently a junior here at Ohio University. I am a Health Coms major and minor in Sales. I also am part of Phi Gamma Nu Business Fraternity and Sales Centre. I am very outgoing and like to be around people. I have two sister one older who graduated from Ohio U and a younger sister who is currently a freshman here too. I had an internship at Akron General Hospital over break and am planning on going back for a paid internship there in the marketing department in the summer. I like to have fun and go out. Hopefully this class with be fun. ha