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Minecraft Post

This past week of Minecraft had some ups and some downs. We were able to setup the area to be used for our maze called Maze Craze. The map we were placed in was very mountainous so we had to clear a lot of space out. The map consists of different obstacles including darkness and trap doors. Players that fall into the trap doors will have to work to figure out how to get back up to ground level. There are also jack-o-lanterns throughout the map since it is almost Halloween. One area of the map has hay bails as well since fall is a time for corn mazes. We have established a starting and ending spot on the map, unfortunately we have been having some trouble setting up a global spawn point so every player enters the map at the same point. We learned about a youtube video that could potentially help us set up a spawn point using command blocks and red stone. We followed every step word for word but unfortunately did not get a spawn point set up. All the commands we entered were accepted but when we asked other players to join, they did not enter the map in the correct spot. Our Beta version of the game is due tomorrow but hopefully we will be able to figure out the spawn point in the next week so then we can focus on the fine detail of the maze.

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This past week in class was probably the most productive week I have had for Minecraft since we started the project. After multiple issues with an illegal version of the game I finally decided to purchase a gift code for the game. My transaction for the game purchase finally went through and I now have my own legal version of Minecraft. The newly purchased version allowed our group to finally be able to connect to each other to start building our map and game. I am the host account so it is important that I attend class every day so my fellow group members can join the game and continue creating our map. For our game idea, we came up with the idea to create a maze. This maze will have several different obstacles such as dark and light as well as different autumn objects like jack o lanterns and hopefully some corn. Unfortunately the map that was generated when we started was very mountainous so we have had to spend a lot of time leveling out space to build the maze. I am still confused on red stone but hopefully our group can figure it out to allow us to place trap doors and other obstacles throughout the maze. We also have to figure out how to spawn players in the same position every time so they all start at the beginning of the maze. The maze can be completed solo or in teams to allow teamwork but I am looking forward to the next couple weeks and the different complexities we can put into our Maze Craze.

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I think it is interesting how you talked about online safety. I think that is something a lot of us teenagers take for granted these days. We do not realize that every single post we ever put on twitter, facebook, etc, can be seen by anyone. People think "oh I can just delete it later, it's fine". But the truth is, what you put online is there forever and will never dissapear. In this time period of "Digital Natives", we grew up using computers for almost every kind of communication apart from an actual telephone. Every email we write can be viewed by someone else if they want to.

In this aspect of online safety, Digital Natives are definitely at a disadvantage compared to Digital Immigrants because they learned differently. For example a lot of people to do will buy almost everything online just because that is the simplest and quickest way of shopping. My friend's dad however is completely against entering his credit card information online for fear of fraud. There are so many hackers and other organizations that can gain access to that information that we do not know what is safe today. I think it is still a working progress but online safety has improved over the last decade and hopefully gets to the point where everyone can trust the internet.

In the article “Born Digital, Palfrey discusses about digital natives who were born after 1980 and had already access to networked digital technologies when they are born. This article is written for digital immigrants who were born before 1980. The purpose of this article is to explain the...

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Another common entry my lit log was working out at the co rec. Although I have been super busy the last couple weeks, I try and workout as often as possible. Sometimes I go and play basketball with my friends, sometimes I will lift with a buddy, or sometimes I just run on the treadmill. Either way, I like to stay active by some sort of physical activity. When I am stressed out with school work, working out really helps me to calm down and refocus my energy. It’s a great stress reliever. My mom tells me that working out gives you more energy which is kind of ironic but in a way that is true for me. After I workout and calm down from my daily activities, it is much easier to focus on my schoolwork that needs done. Yes, you do burn energy but physical activity also gets your heart, mind, and body going so you wider awake. Also in my lit log, which is a 2 for 1 with working out, is that I love listening to music. Certain music can really motivate me to run that much farther or do that many more reps. Upbeat music especially really pushes me to try harder because since it is fast paced, you want to be fast paced and moving. Music can affect everyone in different ways and that is why it is interesting to me

The exigence of working out and listening to music is self-motivation to accomplish a goal. Music motivates me to work out and working out motivates me to get school work done.  I am my own rhetor in the situation as well as the audience. There are many constraints to going to the co rec and the biggest one is time. College is a very busy schedule and I do not always have time to go and workout. Also if schoolwork is very pressing it is important that I finish that first before doing other activities. But if I do have time, it is beneficial for me to get a good workout in before doing homework.

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One of the articles we read was broken down into four different stories. The one I read was the case study of Danielle Devoss. Through this article I gained a new understanding of the word literacy. Danielle talks about her childhood in the story. In her home she said there were always magazines, newspapersm and novels laying all over the house. Her parents each had different reading interests. One day her family decided to purchase a computer in which she had to split time with her family, especially her brother. Danielle enjoyed reading online bulletins. She developed a strong interest and computers and became closer and closer to it. Danielle became skilled in programs such as adobe photoshop, microsoft word, microsoft powerpoint, corel wordperfect, and many more. Her mother tried to persuade her to do more academic related work but Danielle loved working on the computer and online. These skills she developed as a kid of web based literacy helped her to eventually earn her PhD. From there, Danielle sought to teach others about online literacy and teach others how to make the comparison of paper and web based work.

Danielle’s exigence to her online interest is to remain engaged in technology advances. Technology is always changing and as long as she remains literate in the online world, she will be successful. She can be the rhetor when she posts things online or the audience when reading online posts. Since technology is always changing, this can also be a constraint if Danille does not keep up with the changing world. Also the internet is not always reliable so this can be looked at as a constraint as well.

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Everyone has different people that they look up whether it be their parents, famous athletes or movie stars, friends, etc. The biggest role model and influence in my life is my Grandpa Bollock. Words cannot even begin to explain the quality man he is. I consider my grandpa a sponsor in my life for many different reasons. Since I was a little kid, my grandpa has always helped guide me down the right path and to do the right thing. Whenever I would make a mistake, he would calmly correct me and suggest an alternative to the situation. He enjoys giving me advice because he really wants me to be successful in life and everything I do. My grandpa has always motivated me to do volunteer work. From church volunteer work to helping neighbors in his neighborhood or mine, he and I were always involved. He lives a life of service to others. He is nearly 75 years old and still helps elderly people as if he were a teenager helping them out and driving to the store. Grandpa Bollock lives a very healthy life and still even works out at the local YMCA. Since high school he has always worked hard. He had a very profitable career at Bill Defouw’s and was able to retire at an early age. I consider my Grandpa Bollock my role model because when I grow up I want to be the same humble, generous, hardworking man that he is. He is always been there for me and my whole family and I hope that one day I can have the same impact on my family as he has had on me.

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Just like Sierra, I too have become a frequent sticky note user. In high school, I never used sticky notes, nonetheless own them. I wrote everything in my “Knightline” which is basically identical to the Mortar Board we can use at Purdue. At the beginning of my freshman year at Purdue I used the Mortar Board pretty often but I have since changed to using sticky notes. Like Sierra, I also am very brief and informal in my notes because only I need to know what it means. For example I will write “GS quiz Monday”. I don’t add any more details that necessary because I just need something to remind me of what I have coming up. College is a lot more overwhelming than high school with all the work we have to do and different events and assignment we have to manage. It is an adjustment period but now that I’ve found a technique that helps me(sticky notes), I believe it will help me stay organized.

Since the notes are intended for myself to read later, I am both the rhetor and the audience. The exigence of using the sticky notes is usually to remind myself to do something in the future. When I first right the note I am the rhetor that is trying to deliver a message to myself for the future. Sometimes the notes will be needed in a couple days and other times it will be a couple weeks. Regardless of when I read the note, I am my own audience at that point. The biggest constraint of using sticky notes intended for myself only is the fact that I am so informal and short that I sometimes forget what the note means. For example I have a note on my desk now that says “2330494803” and I have no idea what that is significant for. I think that in the future I will add a little bit more detail so that the sticky notes are actually beneficial to me.

Literacy Log Rhetorical Analysis 2

Something that I’ve started to do more often since I’ve gotten to college is write on sticky notes. I’ve found that I have so many more things to keep track of and so little brain power to do so. I use them to remind myself of things that are far off into the future or of things that I need to quickly write down before I forget. This type of situation is one that is personal; it is not intended for others, and for that reason, it is usually very informal and written in a way that probably wouldn’t make sense to other people that read it. I usually write my notes on Post-its and stick them up on my bulletin board because that’s the only place that I know I will look at every day. I, myself in the moment that I am writing the note, am the rhetor, but future me is the audience. I write them, then read them later. Technically, I am both the rhetor and the audience in the situation, but I feel that it is not simultaneously true. The “me” in each case is not in the same exact state of mind, therefore they are different. A major constraint on a situation like that is that I, in the moment that I write, may be in a completely different mindset than I may be in at the moment that I read it. I sometimes write in shorthand that doesn’t make sense to me later, write the event and date but forget to put the actual time that it starts, or even write so quickly that it’s not legible to me when I read it later. The exigence in this rhetorical situation is the situation that I’m writing about whether it be a due date for homework, a meeting, or exam—it is the demand for me to know (later) about that event. It is a simple rhetorical situation that many people find themselves in, either with written or digital notes, that is used to communicate with a future self.

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Throughout most every week, especially in the fall, I have a lot of interaction with football. During our Lit Log assignment I noticed that I was either watching football on TV or I was playing football video games. Unfortunately I haven’t had the opportunity to play in person since I have come to Purdue, I still love the sport. I watch football almost all Saturday and all Sunday every weekend. Then on top of that I watch Monday Night Football as well as occasional Thursday night football.  Between all of these games I recorded in my lit log that I play NCAA Football video games pretty often as well. I am a Purdue fan and a Colts fan so I follow those two teams. My second video game I ever got was a football game. I had to teach myself the controls and learn all of the different plays and teams. I would challenge friends and sometimes family to play me to test my skills as well. Sadly enough I think video games gave me my basic knowledge and interest in football.          

My lit log posts about football are rhetorical situations. The exigence in me watching and playing football is because I obviously like the sport. I like to compete with others in a game that I enjoy and hopefully they do too. I am the rhetor when playing football video games because I usually initiate the play and sometimes have to persuade the other person to play. When watching football, the game is the rhetor that is sending a lesson to me. Obviously I would be the audience when watching a game because I have to evaluate what I see and then choose how to react. Sometimes I will like it sometimes I won’t. The constraints of football in my lit log will be the time commitment. Single video games can range from 30-60 mins and real life games can range from 2-4 hours. This is often hard to squeeze into a busy schedule but I still try and make time.

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In the article written by Deborah Brandt, we learned about literacy sponsors and what they really are. Brandt defines a literacy sponsor as “any agent, local or distant, abstract or concrete, who enable, support, teach, model as well as recruit, regulate, suppress, or withhold literacy- and gain an advantage by it in some way.” A literacy sponsor can be anywhere from parents, siblings, teachers, friends, aunts, uncles, coaches, and mentors who help you improve your literacy in any way. Our literacy can be affected in many different ways apart from what our sponsors shape us to be. Unfortunately race and social class play a significant role in our literacy. Certain countries or practices may not have the same ability to learn different things or even want to practice certain forms of literacy. This puts other cultures in an advantage when the have the opportunity to learn more skills. Wealthier citizens of any culture will also have better opportunities to learn because they will most likely have higher quality sponsors as well as better learning environments. All of these factors so far can affect an individual’s academic success as well. Two of the most important literacy sponsors are probably parents and teachers because you have the most interaction with them and I they are not involved then academic success is going to suffer. One of the last key points that Brandt hits on is that literacy is a competition. Every person at every age and every corner of life is going to try and gain an advantage in some way over their peers. The farther out in front an individual gets, the more likely they are to live a successful, literate life.

The exigence in literacy sponsors is simply the fact that we need quality sponsors in order to have quality literacy skills. It is important that we meet new people growing up that can help us with different aspects of literacy. The audience for literacy sponsorship is the person seeking a sponsor. The rhetor is the sponsor or the one offering the advice and skills to help guide someone.  There are a number of constraints that come along with literacy sponsors. As I said before, different cultures and social classes are not going to have the same opportunities for literacy skills. Also the economic status of the country as well as the home of the rhetor will affect literacy skills and advantages.

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Easily the most common post in my Lit Log would be texting. It was a very frequent reoccurring theme that fills a lot of time throughout the day. I text  when I wake up, before I leave for class, on the way to class, between classes, on the way home from class, and basically during every other aspect of my daily schedule. I am not one that is glued to my phone but I am definitely a frequent texter. I think that texting has changed our society dramatically especially over the last 10 to 15 years. Nearly every teenager is a daily texter and even older generations are beginning to take part. Both of my parents slowly learned how to use the iPhone and probably use it just as often as me now. My dad can do basically all of his work jobs at the palm of his hand now. Since my generation was born into the era known as “Digital Natives”, as we learned in another reading, we can pick up on technology use a lot easier.

Texting has become so vital to today’s society that even two of my grandparent’s text me. One grandfather will text me a couple words periodically. My other grandfather recently purchased his first iPhone and is struggling to grasp the abilities of the machine. He will send me formal texts periodically to check in during college. I enjoy replying to text messages at my own rate. Texting allows conversations to continue when the users please. In this case both texters can be considered the rhetors of a rhetorical situation. The one reading a certain texting would be the audience. In every texting situation, the exigence or purpose is going to be different. The writer may have a question to ask, just want to talk, cheer someone up, or many other texting situations. There are also many different constraints that come along with texting. Phone service may be good or bad and a text may not go through. Different phones are faster than others as well. Also the audience may choose not to reply to the rhetor. Texting makes communication a lot easier today for quick and easy responses or conversations but the only bad part is that analysts say texting is hurting interpersonal skills. Teenagers will be in a social environment and still be texting on their fun. It is tough to balance interpersonal skills while still keeping up with technology and texting but that is where our culture is today.

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 One of the most common activities in my daily schedule would have to be my interaction with Twitter. Ever since I was convinced to get it junior year, I would consider myself an addict. It is such an easy time filler when walking to class or bored in my room. I enjoy following all of my friends to see what they are up to.  Twitter is a good way of keeping in touch without actually talking to the person, although that is still nice too. It is also interesting to me when I follow famous people such as athletes on my favorite sports teams. You get a good idea by what celebrities tweet how their personality is both on and off camera. It puts it into perspective that they are real people too. Although I read tweets a lot more often that I write a tweet, I usually tweet a couple times every couple days unless something big is going on. It’s always a good feeling when other people favorite or retweet your posts.

The “Twittersphere” or Twitter world can definitely be looked at as a rhetorical situation in itself. Everyone that creates a tweet can be considered the rhetor. They have some sort of message to convey to their followers. A lot of times tweets may not actually have a specific exigence or purpose. People like to tweet to let off anger, express feelings for someone or something, or just tweet what is on their mind. Any follower can be considered the audience of the rhetorical situation. There are many constraints that go along with Twitter. One of the biggest constraints would be the 140 character post limit. Not all “Tweeters” can express their thoughts in that small of space. It requires posts and ideas to be short and to the point. Another possible constraint would be your followers. Based on certain people that are following you, certain tweets will and will not be sent. For some people that is not an issue because they are not worried about what others think, but for others they would not want their grandma reading certain things on their profile or in their tweets.

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I had a busy football weekend this week. I went to my old high school’s game on Friday and then I watched the Purdue game and Colts game Saturday and Sunday. During each instance, especially during the high school game, I couldn’t help but think of how much I missed the sport and playing with my friends 5 or 6 days a week. It was the best brotherhood one could ask for especially since I was not blessed with a blood brother. I have played sports since Pre-K but my all-time favorite coach was my high school O-line coach. I don’t think I have ever respected someone more in my life. Coach Gramps was his name to all the football players. He is the father of our head coach as well as our defensive coordinator so it is interesting to see them settle their arguments about the game of football and what is better for the team. Coach Gramps usually ends up backing down because it is not worth the family fights and after all, Kevin is the head coach. Gramps is very literate in the game of football and also one of the most humble men you will meet.

                I started playing varsity sophomore year so I had a whole 3 years with Coach Gramps. I started the first three games sophomore year due to a senior ahead of me being suspended. These games were quite and eye opening experience because I had never played at the varsity level. Every day in practice Gramps would yell at me in every drill to keep going. The first couple weeks of two a days and into the season were tough getting my butt kicked by senior linemen every day but Coach Gramps saw the potential in me to keep trying and fight right back. I went on to start 7 of the 15 games that season in route to a back to back state championship title. Over the next two years (junior and senior year) Coach Gramps would be my mentor to anything football related. Starting off sophomore year I was not very good but by the time senior year wrapped up I had become a stronger, smarter, and quicker offensive linemen. In that time I had also accumulated 4 state championships, two year all conference, all state, academic all state, and Most Valuable Offensive Linemen senior year.

Even though it has been less than a year, I still try and keep touch with Coach Gramps and talk to him at all the football games I go to. I know it considered cheesy to say but when I am older, I definitely want to be like Coach Gramps and possess the character traits he does. Because of him pushing me every day in practice and off the field, I have become the man I am today.  I consider myself very literate in the game of football now because of Coach Gramps. He taught me teamwork, hard work, and humility, but most importantly how to be a man on and off the field and that is going to carry me farther than any football knowledge.

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Literacy Sponsors

Growing up, you never really think about those in your life that impact your reading and writing abilities. Many people may say "oh yeah my teachers taught me that" and maybe they did. But chances are they only teach you the skills you need to go and apply them in real life. You only learn certain subjects for a couple hours a week. That is not enough to learn how to read and write unless you put in the extra time outside of the classroom.

As a child going through elementary school, my parents were very big on reading before bed every night and always finishing my homework on time. I was not allowed to play with the neighbors or do anything else until I finished my assignments. Every summer my mom made me join the summer reading club through a local library that made reading a little more fun. By reading a certain number of books, you earned prizes and gift cards from local stores and restaurants. Even when I didn't want to, my mom would make me read throughout the summer. This helped keep my mind fresh and working so I didn't get set back by taking a couple months off. My dad was usually the one that made me read with him at night. He was a lot bigger critique than my mom with pronunciation and not mumbling when I speak.

Growing up, I considered myself one of the smarter kids in my class. I owe this to my parents as my literacy sponsors for pushing me to keep reading and writing even when I didn't want to. A lot of my friends and their parents were okay with receiving C's as grades, but when I got my first C I was in big trouble. I would complain that other students got that too but they expected more out of me. My older sister had to try really hard to get average grades through school whereas average was too easy for me. My parents expect me to get A's and maybe B's. I am very fortunate to have parents as great as mine that push me to my full potential. Hopefully the skills I learned growing up will come in handy in college.