For Lab today
In lab today, I am asking that you get together with the other folks who read the same article, summarize it, and determine the following:
1. What is the thesis and how do you know?
2. How does the author go about defending/arguing the point?
3. Is it effective? As a group, how did you react?
4. Pose at least one question to the author that you would like answered.
5. Later today, if time permits, individually imagine "your" author that you read having a discussion with a different author in this unit and post it.
The purpose of this activity is to:
1. Clarify your understanding of the content and structure of the essay.
2. Work collaboratively with your peers and check your assumptions.
3. Have a scholarly discussion with author and with peers.
4. Have a permanent post where members of your group as well as other classmates can refer to in drafting the paper for the sciences unit. After reading your fabulous summaries, others may feel compelled to include the piece in their own paper, even if this was not their chosen work.
5. Have the beginnings of an annotated bibliography.
1. What is the thesis and how do you know?
2. How does the author go about defending/arguing the point?
3. Is it effective? As a group, how did you react?
4. Pose at least one question to the author that you would like answered.
5. Later today, if time permits, individually imagine "your" author that you read having a discussion with a different author in this unit and post it.
The purpose of this activity is to:
1. Clarify your understanding of the content and structure of the essay.
2. Work collaboratively with your peers and check your assumptions.
3. Have a scholarly discussion with author and with peers.
4. Have a permanent post where members of your group as well as other classmates can refer to in drafting the paper for the sciences unit. After reading your fabulous summaries, others may feel compelled to include the piece in their own paper, even if this was not their chosen work.
5. Have the beginnings of an annotated bibliography.
posted by DrEmmerling at 9:13 AM
26 Comments:
Fat and Happy? by Hillel Schwartz
1. Schwartz's thesis is at the very beginning of the piece where he states, "Fatness is fine". He goes on to argue that soceity places too much of an emphasis on skinniness, and that if society didn't have these standards, it would be perfectly fine to be fat.
2. The author describes and criticizes the descrimination of fat people. He also states that dieting is unhealthy. Finally, Schwartz describes a "utopian" society in which fatness would be okay. He portrays this society as happy and successful.
3. We thought that Schwartz was relatively effective in his argument. He is aware of both fat and skinny peoples' opinions and seems to have a strong grasp on the subject he is arguing. We thought that Schwartz was effective because he is also very passionate about his argument. However, his perception of a "utopian" fat society is very idealistic. In this sense he is not concrete with his argument, and is only supported by perception.
4. How would it be possible to gain the desired results of Schwartz's utopian society in our world today? Obviously, it would be impossible to create this society that Schwartz proposes, but how can we still solve the problem of "fat descrimination", or is there even a problem in the first place?
Michael Citron
Kohane Kagami
Group Response to "Too Much Of A Good Thing?"
1. Crister’s thesis is that children should be discouraged against overeating. He begins the piece with a discussion of overeating, and spends most of the piece discussing the eating habits of children specifically
2. Crister cites several studies that show that children of five and above will vary their food intake with the portions they are given by parents, that low fat diets given to children do not harm them in any way and that obese children given healthy diets young lead to much better health and eating habits later in life.
3. We agreed that his argument was very convincing and logically put forth. While everything that was put forth was convincing, it did seem that the piece failed to cover all the issues, and was lacking something it required to be a complete analysis. This was understandable, being a newspaper editorial.
4. We would ask if Crister had any ideas on how people could be convinced to go through with his plan to restrict overeating among children.
Samuel Dolan
Rita Siu
Lauren Young
Ted Howard
Regarding the reading on: The Man Who Couldn't Stop Eating:
1. The thesis is,( in regards to Roux-en-Y gastric bypass operation):
"... It is the most drastic treatment we have for obesity. It is also among the strangest operations surgeons perform. It removes no disease, repairs no defects or injury. It is an operation that is intended to control a person's will-- to manipulate his innards so that he does not overeat-- and it is soaring in popularity"(Gawande).
2. He tells the story of a man's life before and after gastric bypass surgery. The things the man went through that were the same as when he was obese, as well as changes he made after the surgery to help him lose the weight and keep it off. He gives a doctor'd P.O.V. on this case, and also gives side effects and injuries that can occur when you are morbidly obese. He also lists some facts about the disorder and problems that can lead to overeating.
3.We think it was an interesting story of a man's turmoil and triumph over obesity. His method of telling the story in an easy-to- understand format was great, as well as giving a doctor's touch by explaining the risks and problems that this man faced because of his excess body fat. Very interesting overall!
4. What does Doctor Gawande think about gastric bypass surgery after he has spent time with his patient and saw and hung out with him post surgery.
Dan Lin and Amanda Harness
The main idea behind the article "Gaining of Fat" is that people's weight has a lot to do with genetic factors, not just what people eat and how often they exercise. Gibbs compares different geographic regions and how people from these area's have varying BMI levels based on there lifestyles and daily activities.
1. The thesis in this piece is as follows: "The traditional notion that obesity is simply the will-deserved consequence of sloth and gluttony has led to unhelpful and sometimes incorrect answers to these questions. Science may at last offer better." Readers can recognize this as the thesis because it tells you where the direction of the paper is going.
2. He uses numerous facts and statistics to support his thesis.
3. Yes it is effective because he uses valid sources as well as logical reasoning to support his argument.
4. Is the obesity epidemic a problem that can be solved in the near future?
Chris Albo
Janet Avalos
Karel Erion
Fat and Happy: In defense of fat acceptance Worley
Fat people are made to feel inadequate by our society.Mary Ray Worley discess how our society may shun obese people. She talks about how its hard to find clothes that fit her and how people are constantly trying to cover up their fat. Society makes it hard for obese people to feel like they fit in and are no different then everyone else. Society is constantly critical on obese people as they survey whats in thier shopping cart, what they chose to eat for dinner etc. without even knowing the person. She discusses how fat people feel ashamed of their weight and won't go to the beach because they dont want others to feel disgusted. Society makes it hard for obese people to do anything without being aware of their larger size. Worley recalls feeling bad when trying to exercise because people were to judgmental.
After attending a conference, she realized that it is ok to be who you are and the people she surrounded herself around at the conference made her feel better. She realized that food is something that should be enjoyed and used for nourishment. She also feels that it is even unhealthier to worry about her weight. The author began to exercise for recreation rather than dieting, and realized it is better to be active.
“those who are fat quickly learn to be deeply ashamed of their bodies and spend their lives trying to become what they are not and hide what cannot be hidden. Our society believes that thinness signals self-discipline and self-respect, whereas fatness signals self-contempt and lack of resolve. We’re so accustomed to this way of thinking that many of us have never considered that there might be an alternative.
Worley uses personal experiences. She goes into her personal life of what she did to change her habits such as going to the conference, explaining her eating habits, and exercising. She also discusses that other people feel uncomfortable revealing their body to the public.
The author’s article is effective because it gives you first hand experiences of someone who made changes with herself. Our group had no idea what NAAFA was and was interesting to know there are organizations to help these “fat people”
What prompted Worley to go to this NAAFA conference in San Diego?
Kyle Valenzuela
Matt Hale
Alexis Nichols
In Seid's article Too "Close to the Bone": The Historical Context for Women's Obsession with Slenderness the idea's of a women's body is examined. "Beauty and fashion are intertwined, and women try to meet unreasonable weight standards also because fashion- ou system of dress- requires them to do so." (332) The article deals with the way Americans began to view their bodies compared to societies new standards. "Fatphobia" became the craze, and people were more concerned with losing weight to look good, rather than be healthy.
1. "We must abandon our new religion because it trivializes human life itself. We must restore a humanistic vision in which self-improvement means cultivating the mind and enlarging the soul; developing generoisity, humor, dignity, and humility; living more graciously with biology, aging, and death; living with our limitations." (337)
2. She uses "broad historical contexts" and examples from women throughout the centuries.
3. We thought it was very effective. For the group, it was again saying that social standards aren't reasonable when it comes to weight.
4. Did you ever have the insecurities as a woman with your weight? Also when was the last time you went on a diet because of these insecurities?
Lauren Bale
Jared Heinrich
Jennifer Karmelich
Why the Fries Taste Good
1.) Our sense of smell makes us pursue whatever the smell is coming from, which eventually leads us to eat more.
2.) The author goes about defending and arguing his point by using his personal experiences such as visiting the IFF(International Flavors & Fragrnaces) and also statistics.
3.) It was certainly effective as it surprised us as to how science plays an important part in the creation of food.
4.) What will become of people if new aromas and flavors are continued to be created? Will it lead people to eat more?
Kimberly
Jesus
Author Greg Crister's argument that children should be looked down upon for eating is wrong and limiting. Frankly, some people cannot control how much weight they gain and retain. In a fat world, people would be much happier and successful because the norms of society would not discriminate against them. Throughout history, fatter people were the more respected and honored ones. If society limits children on what they should/should not eat, it is just as wrong as society telling people they should not be fat. This in itself is discrimination against people who have no choice regarding their body image, and is cruel and unjust.
-Hillel Schwartz
in response to Worley's Fat and Happy: In defense of fat acceptance:
I'm going to be Gawande who is a doctor involved in gastric bypass of a patient whom he also keeps in close contact with.
Hey Worley, I feel that fat people are definately shunned in society, especially in contemporary times when " thin is in." I agree that fat people are judged and criticized but at the same time, if they are extremely obese and want to change their lives in hopes of not being large anymore, why don't they look at other options instead of whining about it? There is dieting, excercise, and even extremes such as gastric bypass. There are many options in the U.S. especially which can cut weight down and can help to control people's over-eating habits. I think that we should not judge fat people because of course it is hurtful, but eating can be condensed and can be modified so everyone can be equal in size if that is what is wanted. Many fat people just give up it seems and don't want to try and instead complain about how society eradicates them, when really, we don't accomodate them soley because it seems like that aren't trying at all to slim down themselves.
Sincerely, Dr. Gawande
To Worley as Gawande:
Your approach to helping the obese lose weight is a good alternative to gastric bypasses. Working with people on a psychological level is good, since most obese cases are psychological. However, for those that need a rapid change, gastric bypasses can help better than just a psychological change.
Critser talking to Gawande.
Crister: Hello, and how are you doing today?
Gawande: Critser, I'm doing fine.
Critser: So do you think that the man you talked about in your article, Vincent Caselli, would have benifited if he was trained to eat smaller portions as a child?
Gawande: I think that even if he had this "training" as a child it would not help much.
Critser: And why do you think that?
Gawande: Well, I think that once the problem got past a certain point there was no helping, so, I guess if he had been taught better eating he could have avoided it.
Critser: Do you think that gastric bypass surgery was his only route to losing weight?
Gawande: Absolutly, his weight had become such a problem that such a drastic operation was his only choice.
Critser: Well thank you.
Critser
To "Mary Ray Worley":
It certainly isn't right for anyone to be made to feel inferior or alien because of their weight. It's also true that most of the methods of losing weight that are currently presented to people are misleading, ineffective, and could lead to loss of self-esteem. However, this doesn't mean that being overweight is healthy. We should still make an effort to reduce the prevalence of obesity by stopping bad eating habits before they begin in childhood - as a vegetarian I'm sure you can agree to that.
- "Greg Crister"
5. Hillel Schwartz, I find your views on obesity to be very interesting. I know that people who are overweight or obese are this way largely because of genetic factors. These factors can cause one person to have a very fast metabolism, while another person might have a very slow metabolism, causing them to have to work twice as hard at remaining slim. I think you have an interesting take on a solution to the problem, but I don't think it is entirely effective. While viewing obesity as socially acceptable would help raise the confidence levels of many overweight individuals, it wouldn't solve the problem of all the money being spent on the health issues caused by this growing epidemic. You're solution would improve certain aspects of the problem, but wouldn't deal with it thoroughly to be completely successful.
W. Wayt Gibbs
Schwartz,
I would have to disagree with you when you state that "Fatness is fine". I do not believe that we should encourage obesity. It is true that some people suffer from obesity because of genetic issues, but even then we should try to get people to exercise and not sit around and become more obece. Luckily society does spend a lot of time on skinniness pressuring people to diet, and try to loose weight. Although too much time may be put into dieting it could be a positive thing in the longrun.
W. Wayt Gibbs
Hello Hillel Schwartz,
I agree with you that society places too much of an emphasis on skinniness, however I do not agree with the statement that if society did not have these standards it would be perfectly fine to be fat. Society should not judge people by how much you way but if you are overweight it is not perfectly fine. They need to look at the health aspect of being overweight. Basically being overweight is not a social issue but a health issue.
Roberta Seid
- J. Karmelich
Worley,
Your article on fat people is really interesting. I didn't know so many people felt ashamed to show their body. Glad to see their are programs, like the NAAFA, to help people when needed. Your personal experiences were very intriguing. One question I had was what is your purpose for going to the conference?
In Response to Why the Fries Taste Good from Mary Worley's perspective:
She would agree that, as humans we eat and need to eat, but I think that she would attribute obesity to more then just eating a lot. Worley discusses genetic factors involved and how harshly society judges obese people (which in turn causes them to not want to exercise etc. becuase they will be too critically looked at). He discusses how people just eat becuase basically they smell the food - but she would say there is way more psychologically involved as well. This argument does not get rid of the stereoype that fat people just eat a lot and have no control becuase it agrees that weight issues are caused by overeating.
-Alexis Nichols
In Response to Why the Fries Taste Good from Mary Worley's perspective:
She would agree that, as humans we eat and need to eat, but I think that she would attribute obesity to more then just eating a lot. Worley discusses genetic factors involved and how harshly society judges obese people (which in turn causes them to not want to exercise etc. becuase they will be too critically looked at). He discusses how people just eat becuase basically they smell the food - but she would say there is way more psychologically involved as well. This argument does not get rid of the stereoype that fat people just eat a lot and have no control becuase it agrees that weight issues are caused by overeating.
-Alexis Nichols
Swartz i disagree with your essay which states "Fatness is Fine."
I argue that it is important to form healthy eating habits at a young age to create a healthy life style. Instead of ignoring the problem of obesity we need to promote healthiness. You claim that our culture places to much emphasis on being skinny. I, on the other hand, feel we need to stop unhealthy eating habits at a young age and stop overeating.
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Dear Dr. Gibbs,
I think your piece on the science behind the obesity epidemic was facsinating. I agreed with the majority of your points and especially liked the fact that you used many facts and statistics in your journal to support your claims.
In response to Mary Ray Worley, I feel that you stand up for people who are obese. People should not make any assumptions or treat them less then human based on their obesity. People who are obese should just be proud of who they are. Why hate your body because others think it is not the correct appearence. I value that she stands up for these people.
Hey Mary,
Your conference sounded amazing. I wish society would embrace those that aren't afraid to show their true selves, and those who have a couple extra pounds. I agree it is uneccessary to worry about your weight. I think that the fashion industry has put to much emphasis on the way your body looks without clothes, and I liked that your conference had vendors to make people feel and look good. Thanks for the wonderful chat!
God Bless,
Roberta
Hi Roberta Seid,
I liked your article "Too Close to the Bone." I was inspired by your belifes on how the fashion industry has become more about a woman's body rather then the clothes themsleves. I was at a conference recently sponsered by NAAFA. At the conference there wer vendors that sold clothes made for "fat people."
Sincerely,
Mary Worley
-Matt Hale
Dear Schlosser,
Hi, I was amused that how science plays an important role in the creation of food. I actually want to visit the IFF(International Flavors and Fragrances) to see how it works and how they create the smell of food and fragrances. Please if you have another opportunity to go to the lab. Your argument was effective and clear to understand. Good job!
Dear Mary Ray Worley,
Your story is an inspiring one about self-discovery, and how obsessed with thinness our society is. However, I must state that while encouraging self-acceptance is a crucial step towards a more humane society, overeating must be discouraged. Although your point that a little fat is not harmful is true, those that are truly at risk and those that may be at risk must be informed of the danger of overeating and eating unhealthy food.
Yours truly, Greg Critser
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