Yearning for Perfection

Pop culture has major cons. However, I must admit that I love pop culture. From some of my favorite shows like Jersey Shore, The Real Housewives of Atlanta, Bad Girls Club, Basketball Wives to my favorite artists such as Beyonce, Ciara, and Jennifer Hudson, they have  made an impact on my life. It seems as though my day cannot go right unless I see the new episode of Basketball Wives every Monday night. The bottom line is this, pop culture has become increasingly persuasive to its viewers. Pop culture makes violence seems appropriate and sometimes necessary. Therefore, children and young adults like myself begin to believe that it is okay for us to do it as well. In addition, pop culture makes education seem like it should be last on our lists. I do not recall ever hearing a member from the case of Jersey Shore bring up the discussion of college. It showcases that the important things in life are material things and that individuals should primarily focus on having fun. It does not inform its viewers that hard work and determination is needed in order to be successful in life. It encourages sex as well. In all reality, pop culture portrays a fantasy world. This is what makes it fun and entertaining. In addition, research has shown that pop culture has a negative impact on children and adolescents. Many young teen girls are going on extreme diets, trying their best to resemble the characters that they see on TV.  Most of those characters have had numerous plastic surgery operations,  but this is not apparent to the teen girls.
Personally, pop culture has had a tremendous impact. I always find myself on yet another diet, determined to lose "just a little more". I have body issues that I feel I will never be able to get rid of. As I continue watching it for entertainment purposes, I'm pretty sure it will only get worse.

Well-Rounded, OVER-worked, Motherly Mess!

Second-shifting is definitely a form of oppression for women. From my observation of various women performing this, I have taken a personal commitment to never have to experience this. My husband WILL help with keeping the house clean and making sure the kids have everything they need. Although second-shifting is widely accepted in the world, it is not for me. I guess that is why I have not taken the direct initiative to learn how to cook. Hahaha! It's respected because its obvious that it is a hard job and puts a lot of strain on women. This leads to many health problems that could easily be avoided such as depression, weight loss/gain, and high blood pressure.  In my opinion, women do it because they know it will not be done if they depend on the man to get it done. I've seen this from first-hand experience. If a mother neglects to go home, cook, clean, and help the kids although she has just left a 8-hour/day job, she is seen as a "bad mother". It seems as though this job is beneath a man's level. Many think that by doing this it makes them soft or feminine. They don't look at it from the point of view of them being a good father and supporter. They think that as long as they go out and bring home a good paycheck that their deed is done. I refuse to get this sort of feedback from my husband, especially since I would like to have at least 5 children.
Women are killing themselves in order to keep an image. They are working twice as hard as their mothers and grandmothers because back then, women were not allowed to work outside of the home. Sadly, the husbands were lucky to be able to find work. They had nothing else to do besides cook, clean, and birth/take care of children. In today's society, women have a lot more equal rights as men. They can easily find jobs, high-position jobs at that. However, they cannot forget the central role of women that they witnessed from their mothers and grandmothers which is to be a dynamic worker, wife, and mother. However, this WILL NOT be my style of shifting. GUARANTEED!

Muted Reaction

Anita met Rick when she was in high school. Both attended Raleigh High School, but they never conversated with one another. Ten years later, they reconnected and decided to start dating. Shortly thereafter, they decided to get married. This is when the good turned into the bad. Rick was always a bad choice for Anita, in my opinion. First of all, he was UGLY! I know looks are not important when finding love, but still, you have to be at least "okay" looking. Rick was not even that! Second, he was LAZY! He had a history of letting his women take care of him and not being able to hold down a job. Third, he was a HOE! He was talking to at least 5 other women when he started dating Anita. After they got married, they began living in a violence, drug-filled apartment complex called "Oak-Haven". Neither one decided to find a job and began living off of food stamps and child support checks. Rick even started selling drugs.
One day, Anita left her 6 year old daughter and 5 year old son at the apartment with Rick. The police had been secretly watching the apartment for two weeks now, and they knew what kind of activity was going on inside. They busted Rick was over $5,000 worth of marijuana in the house and immediately called DHS for the sake of the children.
As I reflect on what happened that day, I'm becoming sad and filled with anger. My mom had to go the DHS office and find out what would happen to the children. They were playing with toys, happy as could be, not knowing what in the world was going on. The 5 year old son would later be placed in the care of his father who lived 3 hours away, and the 6 year old daughter would began living with her grandmother.
After another year of infidelity, Anita came to her senses and began to threaten Rick with a divorce. Because of this, he began to grow violent. Anita would come visit us and have a black eye. I recall one particular instance in which he punched her in the ear. Her ear began ringing and hurting. After two weeks, she decided to go to the doctor. The doctor told her that severe damage had been done and that she would probably be deaf in a couple of years. Today, Anita cannot hear out of her right ear and has to wear a hearing aid. Happily, she is no longer with Rick. She finally realized that she could do better, and she even married someone else.
This story relates to our class discussion because we have been talking about men and their need to feel powerful. Rick was abusive because of a insecurity he had in himself, something that we also discussed. In most cases, a man will react in a violent manner if he feels disrespected or threatened, especially by a female.

Tarnished Gold

When I think about abortion, I immediately identify myself as pro-life. Pro-life means that  I do not support a woman killing an unborn fetus. No matter what pro-choice believers say, abortion is MURDER. It is a sin and has terrible consequences; Not to mention the psychological effects of it.  I have had many friends who have decided to have abortions, and they had to take depressants to help them cope with depression and anger. If someone ends up with an unwanted pregnancy, I feel that there are better options for them. Adoption and surrogancy, of course, being #1. There are women who would give up everything they own just to be able to give birth to a child, and I feel that many women take this ability for granted.
Social changes obviously must be made in order to make abortion unnecessary. These changes include makking better decisions when dealing with sex, especially teen girls. Also, taking advantage of birth control must stop. I think that there should be an age limit on when birth control can begin being dispensed. I feel that a reasonable age is 16 years old. Sadly, I know a few 12-13 year old girls who are engaging in sex, and their mothers have decided to put them on birth control pills instead of putting them on punishment like I would do my own children. More sex abstinence and education classes should be taught inside our schools. The bottom line is that in order to make abortion unncessary, women should stop taking advantage of the current option available to actually have an abortion. For example, a woman who is really involved in her career may choose to have an abortion simply because she isn't "ready". She's stable, middle-class salary, committed boyfriend, etc.. She has ABSOLUTELY no justifiable reason to have  an abortion. However, you'd be surprised at how many women actually have abortions like this.
Babies are a blessing from God. In no circumstances should abortion be "okay" or "necessary". There is always the option of adoption and surrogancy.

She's On Fire (:

After reading "The Myth of Vaginal Orgasm", a lot of questions have been answered. I recall being in high school and being the only virgin among my close group of friends. I would often ask them how "it" felt. An orgasm that is...and they would explain that it could not be described. As Krystal Nicole would say, "It's the best feeling ever." A year later, I beaome sexually active myself.  However, I did not get the effect that they were boosting about. I could not have an orgasm. I began to talk about it with my mom, aunts, and cousins, and they simply replied that the person I was having sex with was not doing it right. I knew that I enjoyed my boyfriend's sex back then so I did not believe that it was his fault. HOWEVER....knowing what I know now..it was his fault.
 My present belief is that I 100% agree with the conception that the clitoris has to be stimulated. My current boyfriend has great success in making sure that I achieve orgasm with each sexual encounter, and I absolutely love it.
"The Myth of Vaginal Orgasm" also explained how the vagina does not actually have sensitive nerves in it. This explains a lot. Our vaginas are used as tools in order to help men achieve their erections. I  personally do not have a problem with it. I love my boyfriend and will do whatever is necessary to please him. Sex feels great, and it can really bond a couple together when feelings and love is involved. With that being said, I would like to point out that I do not believe/practice casual sex. Sex should be with a person that you have genuine feelings about and not just someone who you find physically attractive.
My feelings about my own body has changed a lot too. Through reading this article and experimentation with my partner, I have found the exact ways that my body likes to be touched in order to help me achieve more orgasms. I'm becoming more comfortable with my body. For as my need for a partner:  No, a partner is not NECESSARY at all for a woman to achieve an orgasm. However, a partner is necessary for compassion, love, and intimacy. I challenge my fellow classmates and myself to go out and discover more about our bodies in order to enjoy sex more. (:

An Amazing Feeling (:

I was sixteen years old when I first met Justin Gaines. He was an all-star running back at a high school not too far from mine. I was immediately attracted to him. Muscular, light-skinned, cute smile, small eyes. It was something about his presence, his style. I knew he was going to be something special. However, there was one small problem; He had a girlfriend!  Thereafter, I decided that I would not pursue anything more than a friendship with him.
Fast forward...3 years later...I'm sitting at the library chatting on Facebook when Justin puts up a status talking about playing football at a college in Oklahoma. This status brought back memories and the fact that I used to have a small crush on him. I immediately "liked" the status, and made a comment asking "When are you leaving?"  He responded, and it sparked an ongoing conversation. He inboxed me calling me "a stranger who did not know him anymore." I replied that I hadn't forgotten him, and he gave me his number. As the universal phrase goes, THAT'S ALL SHE WROTE! We have been inseperable every since that day.
Our love is one that cannot be described in words.
Once Justin and I made our relationship official, I began having wild, passionate daydreams and visions about us having sex. Keep in mind that I was certainly not a virgin by this time. I had encoutered a couple of previous sexual partners but nothing like him. He taught me the feeling of what sex is really supposed to feel like. Our first encounter took place at his house. When I arrived, he had decorated the room with scented candles, rose petals, and sweet chocolate candy. He took me by the hand and told me that I was the most beautiful girl in the world and that he was lucky to have me. He started kissing on my neck and made his way down to my thighs. I was so caught up in the moment. It simply took my breath away. He entered into my vagina, and it was the perfect fit, sort of like it belonged there. We made love for about an hour and a half, and Justin did what I thought was the impossible. I reached orgasm which was something I had never experienced before. Therefore, it was an amazing feeling, and I am so thankful for it. We have been dating for almost a year, and I truly feel as though Justin is "the one". He's absolutely incredible, and I thank the good Lord above for him each and every day.

Acceptance is the New Accessory!

When I think about where I have come from and where I have been, there is not much of a different. I am currently a proud, Christian student studying English licensure at USM. I used to be a student at Raleigh High School where I was sometimes outcaste because I was popular among the majority white people. I drove a nice car, stayed in a nice neighborhood, and wore expensive clothes.  Is this why the white people liked me? Certainly!; Black people thought so. My very own African-American peers were the ones who made me feel like an outcaste. They would often say I was a kiss-up and wanted to be “white”. In my preparation for coming to Southern Miss, I was expecting the same thing to happen. However, it did not. Here, I find myself being accepted more and happier than ever. I am privileged in my position because those same people at Raleigh High School who did not accept me are now college dropouts and jobless. I, on the other hand, am only three semesters away from my bachelor’s degree. I do not think I am better than other people because of this. I am simply an African-American woman who is trying to live a comfortable life in this prejudice society. As educated women, we should realize that these people are simply ignorant and just because a person behaves/looks a certain way, it does not mean that they are trying to be someone they’re not. One way for people to get over this problem is to stop creating stereotypes and accept people for who they are. Each person has his/her own story to tell. People should reflect and determine what exactly caused them to stereotype that certain people. Until then, people will often question the exact reason for their social position, including myself.

Makeup...Heels...Grace (:

As women, we are expected to conduct ourselves in the utmost feminine manner at all times.  However, what society and most men do not realize is that being a lady is very hard! You are always expected to look and act a sudden way, and in the instance when one breaks that stereotype, she gets talked about in a negative way.

I can recall a certain scenario when I was ten years old. I was going through a phase as much of us women do at a young age. Yeah, that stage….the tomboy stage. I would wear baggy pants, Jordans, and a hat turned to the back. In addition, I would often wear my hair in a ponytail which my mother absolutely hated. I wore no make-up and often considered myself as “one of the guys”.  For Christmas, I always wanted dirt bikes and 4-wheelers instead of the typical Barbie dolls and Easy-Bake ovens. 

This began to raise concern with my parents and they demanded that I make a change. The change was that I would act more like a “girl”…as if there was a certain way that girls HAVE to act. I was obedient and went through a total transformation.  Once junior high school rolled around, I was ready! I had a new wardrobe filled with an array of cute dresses, heels, and girl y tops. I must admit, however, that this change gave me a new attitude. I was more confident and believed that I was beautiful.  In addition, I became a cheerleader.  I carry those same “gender” transformations today and conduct myself as a feminine woman would.  A lady is always seen but never heard.  She’s conservative, stylish, graceful, curvy, supportive of her man, and strong.  She never considers herself as one of the guys and spends countless hours primping to ensure that she doesn’t look like one either. I am a lady. (:

Feminism? To Care or Not to Care

Before entering my Women’s Studies class, I had a very keen definition of what I thought feminism was. In my definition, a feminist is someone who does anything to support, improve, and justify women's rights. They want women to have the same rights as men. The typical stereotype of a feminist is someone who hates men, lesbian, socially awkward, evil, and anti-religious.However, after just two weeks of being a student in Mrs. Peerboom's class, I have a whole new definition of what feminism is. According to Sarah D. Bunting, "If you believe in, support, look fondly on, hope for, and/or work towards equality of the sexes, you are feminist.

After completing a worksheet that assessed if you considered yourself a feminist or not, I discovered that according to Bunting's definition, I am a feminist. I absolutely have to agree. I support the rights of women and wish that they had every equal opportunity as possible. However, that is not the problem. The problem is that I'm one of those supporters that is too lazy to care. I feel that although I am a women, these problems do not affect me enough directly in order for me to react to them. 

I also hold the beliefs that some positions should not be available to women. These places include running a country (president) and being in the pulpit of a church. My belief on this subject simply goes back to my upbringing and tradition. Its just not tradition to see a women trying to run a country. I'm not saying that she doesn't have the ability to do it. It just does not look right.

Although many people may view my opinion as irrelevant and/or stupid. It is just that, my opinion. I am entitled to it, and I will always consider myself as a carefree feminist.

Soul Food

If anyone has ever seen the movie "Soul Food", he/she will know that the movie is based on a traditional African-American family. The grandmother, "Big Mama", is the main character in the movie. She works to keep her family together while unknowingly battling cancer. The movie concludes with Big Mama dying, but her family forms a bond that could most certainly not be broke. I came to the quick realization that this movie reminded me a lot of my own grandmother and her conquet to unite our family.
Pulaski is a blink-and-you-miss-it town with a population capacity of 175 people. Growing up, I never quite got used to the boredom that it possessed. I used to frequently express my hate of the place, and I made the remark that I was going to leave and never come back. As a junior here at the University of Southern Mississippi, I find myself eating those words that I spoke ten years ago. Katie Merl King is my grandmother's name. Strong, kind-hearted, beautiful.. she was. As a mother of twelve, she tried her best to instill good moral values in her children and grandchildren. She was my backbone. She was my best friend. She was my role model. I lost my grandmother on August 4, 2011. It is a day that I will never forget. As she laid across the stretcher, I held her cold, fragile hand. A salty tear stung my lip, and I took a deep breath. My grandmother was gone.
I have spent 25 days without the comfort of her presense. Although I am sad, I am left with her blessing of my ambitions, dreams, and boyfriend. In addition, I have nine aunts and uncles who come together every Sunday to have dinner in memory of my grandmother. Katie Merl King was a outstanding lady. I love you grandma!!

Plan of Attack!

Zombies are headed our way. My group and I have devised a plan that we feel will be quite strategic in getting rid of these blood-sucking creatures. First, we have reserved a radio spot with a local station. During that radio spot, we will alert the media about the zombies and refer them to local shelters that are set up specifically for this purpose. If they choose to stay home, we also provide a list of things that should be included in a zombie preparation kit. These things include water, non-parishable food items, bandages, and pocket knives. We felt that this idea would be significant because a lot of people listen to the radio. Next, we chose to print colorful, attention-grabbing flyers that we would post all over the city basically detailing these same instructions. These flyers would serve as a visual aid which I feel is very important when trying to persuade someone to do something. The main goal of our presentation is to get the audience to see that this attack is something serious and that we are very passionate about trying to help them get through it. We also want them to be interested in learning more about why has happened and specific pre-cautions to take to ensure that it doesn't happen in the future. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFpOin0j90Q offers a great, effective way of giving presentations. The tips were creative, and I definitely improved.

Fashion....BUST!

Growing up, I have always had a die-heart interest in fashion. I would always play "dress-up" with my mother's clothes, shoes, jewelry, and make-up. As a young lady today, this interest is still very much a part of my life. With amazing local clothing stores such as Forever21, Charlotte Russe, 579, and Body Central, looking fierce is not a hard task. All is takes is a little boldness and confidence. While doing some online browsing, I found that a website that caught my attention. What's so funny about this particular website is that I am a subscribed fan of it. I receive monthly magazines. This website is http://www.seventeen.com/. Seventeen deals with a variety of issues ranging from fashion, boys, dating, real-life situations, community service, and drama. This has been one of my favorite magazines for years. I was quite disappointed when I checked out the website, however. I feel that the website is cluttered and does not flow very well. In addition, the tutorial videos were short and extremely boring. For example, one girl was giving a tutorial on how to apply "cat-eye" to your eyebrows and eyelashes. I could barely understand, and her tips did not work. To other individuals who may not be familiar to the website, it may be pretty persuasive. My letter would go as follows:
         Dear Webmaster,
               I have been a avid fan/supporter of Seventeen magazine for years. I have been a subscription member for numerous years. I recently visited the online website, and I must admit that I was pretty disappointed. In my opinion, the website was kind of cluttered and had entirely too much stuff going on. I would like to offer a few suggestions on how to make the website a little better to understand. First, I think it would be a good idea to add a few more sub-topic tabs. Second, I think it would be a good idea to eliminate the video tutorials or make them more interesting. Honestly, when I watched them I was not persuaded at all or encouraged to try their tips. Last, I think that the community service/real-life situations that are featured in the magazine should be incorporated into the website more. For example, you could display a personal letter from one of the individuals telling the world how she feels and what she would like them to know. Webmaster, I am not trying to be disrespectful at all. I am only trying to offer a few suggestions that would make your already amazing brand be even more amazing! Please consider my points and suggestions. Thank you for your time.
                     Sincerely,
                       A Concerned Fan

ZombieLand!!!! *Approach With Caution* Report

It's 2011, and the setting is Hattiesburg, MS. Everyone says that zombies have been spotted 50 miles from here. The goal of this proposal is to persuade people to support our (The Forrest County Public Safety Dept.) plan. This plan was designed to keep everyone safe and to ensure that the community was as prepared as possible for the zombie attack. The problem is that people are not prepared for a zombie attack. The Forrest County Public Safety Department needs a way to spread awareness of zombie attack procedures among people.
Thus far, my group and I are on schedule with our plan of attack on the zombies. Each person was assigned a specific part of the project to perform. Personally, I was responsible for the introduction and the script for the on-air radio spot. We as a group were planning to have more meetings but were unable to have them due to conflicting time schedules. In my introduction, I set the background for the cause of the problem and gave the community an outlook on what to expect. In my on-air script, I devised a zombie-attack plan where I included certain items that should be included in a kit. These items included non-perishable food items, water, and a first-aid kit. My future work will include a better, slightly revised version of an on-air radio show script. I do not foresee any future problems except for the scheduling problems my group faces while trying to meet up.
Overall, I feel that our plan is going good. Every group member is lending a helping hand and doing his/her part. We all are passionately interested in the zombie topic and would like to receive a good grade on the project.
In conclusion, recommendations I suggest for my group is that we work harder to set a specific schedule and stick to it. Secondly, I feel that the instructor could give us more pointers on how to make our project better.

JOB? MONEY!! :)

In today's economy, finding a job is hard work. Many companies are suffering major wages and are not hiring new workers. As a biological sciences major at the University of Southern Mississippi, I have done research searching for new, potential job opportunities and internship opportunities. After doing extensive research and searching online databases, I have found four potential jobs/internships that I feel I qualify for and that I would potentially be interested in. These four potential jobs/internships include shadowing a pharmacist at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, pharmacy technician here in Hattiesburg, biology tutor, and The Home Depot. The first three listings are all related in my field of biology/pre-pharmacy. The last one is not really related, but I'm still interested.  The shadowing program at UMMC involves shadowing a pharmacist/physician for 10 weeks. It includes assisting the professional in daily routine activities. The volunteer gets firsthand experience with the doctors. Interested candidates should visit http://mca.umc.edu/HealthCareers/HealthCareersDevelopmentProgram.html. The pharmacy technician postion is available at the Wesley Hospital here in Hattiesburg. Information can be found at http://www.job.com/my.job/jobdisplay/page=jobview/pt=2/key=78292924/. Another potential job is a biology tutor for students. This job includes assisting students in all aspects of biology. The potential candidate must possess an advanced amount of knowledge in biology. More information about this job can be found at http://chs.taleo.net/careersection/10001/jobdetail.ftl?lang=en&job=715126&sre=JB-12080. Last, I feel that a job working at The Home Depot will be a pretty good experience. This information can be found at http://www.career-hound.com/jobs/register.jsp?kw0=mmwwlihjhrrim&job=home+depot&cib=484&SID=5460553.
I have many skills, accomplishments, and experiences that I feel can contribute to me getting one of these postions. I have good communication skills, problem-solving skills, communication skills, and logic/reasoning skills. In addition, I am a Jubilee scholar. I have been on the Dean's List (3.5 GPA or better). In addition, I am a L.N. Payton HeadStart volunteer and an Oseola McCarty volunteer. I can demonstrate that I possess these skills by incorporating them into my resume and cover letter. I feel that this can most definitely give me an upper-hand with the competition. I think my communication skills will definitely play a major part with the Home Depot job. Effective communication will be key when persuading customers to buy the products.
The job that I find the most interesting and that I would like to pursue is the pharmacy technician position. I chose this one because I feel that it will prepare me the best for my ultimate goal of becoming a pharmacist. Even since I was a child, I have always dreamed of becoming a pharmacist. They make a lot of money and get to help their community at the same time.  Also, I feel that it would be a fun environment to work in. Fellow employees and I would have to work as a team, and I love being a team player. In addition, knowledge in biology/chemistry plays a major part in pharmacy. This would be a good point to add to my resume. I also have a pharmacy technician license. This would most definitely showcase that I'm qualified for the job and that I have a real interest in performing it. If I fully equip myself while creating my resume and cover letter, I am confident that I will get this job.

Professional Correspondence

To: T. Leoni, Manager, Personnel Department
From: Donald Pryzblo, Manager, Data Processing Department
Subject: INCORRECT PAYROLL CHECKS

Hello! Because I am passionate about my job, I have been reviewing various errors in the computer files. It is an important point to note that most of these errors were made by your desk clerks. I do not feel that it is fair that my workers are being blamed. Because of your workers incorrect procedure and performance, time tickets are proving to be wrong. Following proper procedures is very important in companies these days. They can allow the company to witness massive success. I'm aware that you would like for my workers to redo the work that your employees performed incorrectly. Honestly, we do not have the time to do this. In addition, our company does not have the funds needed to hire additional help. I recommend that you tell your clerks to review their work carefully before giving it to the computer operators.

When e-mailing people, it is very important to be direct and straight to the point; especially when dealing with problems such as incorrect procedures in a job. I made a few changes to the original e-mail. The first change I made was that I started out by simply saying "Hello". It is the proper and polite gesture to make. The second change I made was that I explained how passionate I was about my job. It's important to show the individual that you are all about your business and that you care. Next, I arranged the words in a different order so that it came across more friendly. I tried to stress the importance of proper procedures and the success that it could bring to the company. Last, I stated why hiring additional help was not a good idea. This is also a good point. Hiring  additional help will cause the company to suffer a major loss. I feel that these revisions will prove to be more effective in persuading T. Leoni to get his workers on the right track. My goal in this revision was to set a friendlier tone and provide statements for why proper procedures needed to be followed.

Will That Work?

Brochures are used to persuade people each and every day. They range from colorful to colorless, broad to specific, and interesting to boring. After browsing through about ten web pages dealing with "excellenet biological science departments", I stumbled across Arizona State University. Not only do they have an arts and sciences department, they also divide it into 3 more departments: College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences, and School of Letters and Sciences. Also, the web site talks about the faculty members there who have made a major impact in the biology world. These impacts include a Nobel Laureate winner, Pulitzer Prize winner, and some NSF Early Career awardees. This website can be viewed at http://artsandsciences.asu.edu/. It lists many different quotes from famous philosophers and bright pictures. One example is "Out of intense complexities intense simplicities emerge" -Winston Churchill. In my opinion, this is a major strength of this website. It also describes numerous organizations on campus that I could possibly get involved in if I was to choose this school. Clearly, one can tell that the intended audience is prospective students and undecided majors. In addition, it describes the work environment and career fields. On the other hand, one of the worst online web pages that I found dealing with "excellent biological sciene departments" was the University of Nebraska Kearney. This web page was only one page in length and included only a small amount of pictures. Therefore, it is safe to say that this web page was boring and that I feel that they do a poor job in recruiting people to their program. This may account for the school being really small and not targeting a large amount of prospective students. This web page can be found at http://www.unk.edu/nss/biology.aspx?id=1224. In my opinion, this web page absolutely failed at its attempt to persuade people to attend or better yet, even visit the University of Nebraska Kearney's campus. They did not effectively use the online resource available and decided to be broad and boring instead of specific and interesting.
After viewing both a good and a bad example of a online web brochure, I have thought of a good way to create mine. I will be writing a brochure about the biological sciences program at the University of Southern Mississippi. My purpose will be to persuade them that it is an excellent program and that they should attend school here. I desire that they look further into it, maybe schedule a visit, and ultimately, choose USM as their place of study. My targeted (primary) readers are prospective students and undecided majors.  The key questions my reader will ask is: "Why should I choose this place?", "What networking opportunities can I gain from this?", and "What would my salary be?" My reader will use the information I provided to take USM as a consideration for attendance and to schedule a potential campus visit. I would like for my intended audience to have a passionate attitude toward biology just as I do. As for as their attitude towards me, I would like for my audiene to view me as an intelligent lady who knows what she is talking about and who has a bright future ahead of her.

I Have To Read That???

As a Biological Sciences major, we are often assigned many articles, journals, books, and lab manuals to read. During my first semester of my sophomore year, we had to read and perform lab experiments for my Chemistry 107 class. I took the class once a week from 2:30-5:05. The book was entitled "Chemistry II Lab Manual" by Tina Masterson.
The lab manual included roughly around twenty different lab experiments for us to perform. These experiments included titrations, solution preparation, melting/boiling points, and solubility. Each experiment varied in the amount of time taken to complete each one. While most of the experiments took the entire two and a half hours to complete, some took only an hour and a half. In the manual, Mrs. Masterson is discussing many of the areas that make up the chemistry world today. As previously stated, many of these areas include titrations, solution preparation, melting/boiling points, and solubility. Because I took many biology classes in high school and my freshman year of college, I am pretty knowledgable when it comes to biology and chemistry.  The motivation behind the creation of this lab manual was to teach students the proper techniques and procedures behind performing certain experiments in a lab setting. There are many things to consider when reading this lab manual and performing the experiments. One of the major issues is health/safety. During these experiments, many toxic chemicals and reagants are used so it is very wise to take all necessary precautions. The first safety rule is that one must always wear safety goggles while in the lab. In addition, if any toxic chemical touches the skin, the first thing one should do is wash the surface with tap water.
As previously stated, the author's name is Tina Masterson. She is over the chemistry department here at the University of Southern Mississippi. She is a really smart and nice lady. She is always in the chemistry tutor ceneter willing to lend a helping hand to anyone who is having trouble with their work. Her purpose of writing this manual is to ensure that her students are following proper directions and learning about chemistry in the proper manner. I know this because Mrs. Masterson is a very passionate person and knows quite a lot of information about chemistry. The intended audience for the Chemistry II Lab Manual is anyone who may be interested in chemistry or students who are enrolled in the course. Directly, Mrs. Masterson is targeting one certain group of people. That group of people is the chemistry students here at Southern Miss. Because of the language used in this manual, Mrs. Masterson is assuming that the students using the manual have a chemistry background and already have a basis with the chemistry concept. She uses terms that people outside of the discourse community of chemistry students may not know about. These terms include flasks, beakers, and burets. Her tone is strong and very direct.
In my opinion, the writer did an excellent job in writing the lab manual. Her directions were very easy to understand and follow. They led to a very successful  and fun lab experience. However, one improvement that could have been made is that she could have taken out some of the steps in certain experiments because they were very repetitive. Overall, the Chemistry II Lab Manual was a success, and I received a B in the class. :)

Simply Rae

Hello everyone! My name is Rakaeja Nickson, and I am from Raleigh, Mississippi. I am a sophomore here at the University of Southern Mississippi majoring in Biological Sciences. My goal is to become a pharmacist and work in a chain store. I'm thinking somewhere such as Wal-Mart, Walgreens, or CVS. I am a member of I.D.E.A.L. Women and the Afro-American Student Organization. I own four horses named Trixie, Jim, Blazer, and Susie. I have the most amazing boyfriend, and his name is Justin. My favorite colors are yellow and red. I am quite an experienced writer. Honestly, English is my favorite subjects. Becoming a high school English teacher is really what I want to do with my life, but I'm choosing to become a pharmacist because of the money. But that's another topic....lol. When it comes to writing, my favorite things to write are research papers, persuasive essays, and narrative essays. In high school, I received the top average award in English II, English III, and English IV. I recall one of our essay topics being "Life is like a bowl of cherries". Once given this topic, I had a feeling that it was going to be very difficult. However, it only required a little thinking. After much thought, I wrote a beautiful paper and received a 98. :) Upon completion of this course, I hope to gain a better understanding of linking writing to more media sources. I think my main trouble in this course will be finding the time to do all the homework.