Thursday, February 18, 2010

Act II Scene iii Line 27-29
Fool- "I did impeticos the gratillity, for Malviolio's nose is no whipstock, my lady has a white hand, and the Myrmidons are no bottle-ale houses."

The fool is entertaining Sir Andrew and Toby with his wordplay, but he is also warning them about Malvolio and Olivia and that they won't put up with their drunken behavior much longer. He is telling them to head his warnings. However, Sir Andrew and Toby don;t seem to take the warning to heart, as the next line from Sir Andrew after the Fool's warning is "Excellent! Why this is the best fooling when all is done. Now, a song."

Thursday, February 4, 2010

Taking Wilderness In Hand

My initial thought for this article was; 'why do I care about the Torreya tree?' After thinking about it some more, I decided I really don't care about the Torreya tree, and upon further reading of the article, I found that Michelle Nijhuis, the author of the article, didn't give me any reasons to care about the tree. Nijhuis even admits the tree is small and scraggly and not much to look at. The only other thing I got out of this article was it is a great example of the 'small object large subject' topic. The tree is a small object, compared to the large subject of global warming and climate change.

Virtual Iraq

Video games could save lives. Wait, what?! The popular belief has always been been that video games are making Americans lazier and stupider. According to the article "Virtual Iraq" however, video games could significantly improve the lives of people affected by PTSD, or post traumatic stress disorder. I found this news to be very interesting. Soldiers get PTSD by being in a wartime situation, and the cure is to put them in a wartime situation again- only this time in the video game world? Personally, I am amazed by the scientists and researchers who discovered this breakthrough in PTSD treatment, this is something I would never have thought to try. Next time I'm killing terrorists on xbox instead of doing homework I guess I won't have to feel guilty about procrastinating- I'm not just playing videogames, I'm supporting research for the troops.

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

Red Bull

"Red Bull gives you wiiiiiings!", or so says the commercials for the popular energy drink. Personally, I have always wondered why I need wings? Why do I need wings to get to class and work, aren't feet enough anymore? Man doesn't have wings for a reason.

Now, obviously the marketers behind Red Bull aren't implying the drink will actually give the drinker wings, they are talking about energy. But why do consumers need more energy to get through simple, every day tasks? The existence of Red Bull asserts a claim on the American society. Back in the day, the average person did not need extra energy just to get through their day. But nowadays, it seems Joe Schmoe needs constant extra energy boosts just to go about everyday tasks, such as going to work or school.

The people behind Red Bull assume the average American is always on the go. Red Bull assumes that people's free time is spent rushing around, never taking a moments rest to kick back. Given life's frantic pace, people NEED Red Bull to keep up, or so says the marketers behind Red Bull.