Images of Crisis

Images of crisis are so incorporated into our lives I have never stopped and thought about them.  Every day we turn on the tv and see videos of war or we see images of destruction left by natural disasters.  Death is thrown in our faces every day and desensitizes us to the point that pictures of rows of dead children doesn’t spark any interest or concern. In the pictures on these first couple pages children are holding signs asking for donations for the tsunami and the Haiti victims.  They are smiling and one of the posters has hearts and smiley faces on it. It almost makes the events that killed thousands of people something light hearted.  It actually seems normal to me for the kids to be doing that.  Since we live out of harm’s  way and we haven’t been hit by any serious disaster I feel like we have a ridiculous apathy for pain and suffering in other cultures around the world.  I agree with James Nachtwey when he basically says the images that inform people are supposed to inspire compassion and cause a unity to make a change, but I feel like when we see these images its nothing new. There’s always a disaster, there’s always war, and a lot of times there’s nothing we can do to change anything so we just don’t care.  I’m sure if we lived there in that culture and there was an actual impact on us besides seeing another picture of dead people, we would care a lot more.  The value of a human life to us is nothing if it is nowhere near us or shares our same culture. And it is because of this bombardment of images of death we feel that way.  That sounds really messed up but from what I have seen, there is some truth to it.  I am not saying that is the way I feel but I think subconsciously there would be a solid number of people who would agree.

Resources for paper

1) Lemonick, Michael D. "Designer Babies." TIME.com. TIME, 11 Jan. 1999. Web. 13 Oct. 2011. 

          <http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,989987,00.html>.

 

2) Rothblatt, Martine. UnZipped Genes. Philadelphia: Temple UP, 1997. Print.

 

3) Gosden, Roger. Designing Babies. New York: W. H. Freeman and, 1999. Print.

 

4)  George, Robert P. "Embryo ethics." Daedalus 137.1 (2008): 23+. Academic OneFile. Web. 21

             Sep. 2011.

 

5) Wilson, Duncan. "Human--animal embryos." Biological Sciences Review Apr. 2008: 

             21+. General OneFile. Web. 21 Sep. 2011.

 

6) "Genetic Engineering - Designer Babies | The Future of Human Evolution | HumansFuture.org."

            The Future of Human Evolution Website | HumansFuture.org. Future Human Evolution, 

             2010. Web. 13 Oct. 2011. <http://www.humansfuture.org

             /genetic_engineering_designer_babies.php.htm>.

 

7) Green, Ronald, and Marcy Darnovsky. "Genetically Engineering a 'Perfect' Baby : NPR." NPR

              : National Public Radio : News & Analysis, World, US, Music & Arts : NPR. NPR, 15 

              Apr. 2008. Web. 13 Oct. 2011. <http://www.npr.org/templates/story

              /story.php?storyId=89655637>.

 

8) Magalhães, João Pedro De. "Genetic Engineering: Defining Our Children's Traits." João Pedro

               De Magalhães: Science, Thoughts, and Dreams of the Future. 2006. Web. 13 Oct. 2011.

               <http://jp.senescence.info/thoughts/genetics.html>.

 

9) Kleiner, Keith. "Designer Babies - Like It or Not, Here They Come." Singularityhub.com. 

               Singularity Hub, 25 Feb. 2009. Web. 13 Oct. 2011. <http://singularityhub.com/2009/02

               /25/designer-babies-like-it-or-not-here-they-come/>.

 

10) Greenwood, Veronique. "Genetically Engineering Babies With Less Disease—and 3 Parents

                —Seems Safe | 80beats | Discover Magazine." Discover Blogs | Discover Magazine. 

                Discover Magazine, 21 Apr. 2011. Web. 13 Oct. 2011. 

                <http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2011/04/21/genetically-engineering-babies-

                 with-less-disease-and-3-parents-seems-safe/>.

 

11) Arnold, Paul. "Pros and Cons of Genetic Engineering in Humans." Find Science & Technology

                 Articles, Education Lesson Plans, Tech Tips, Computer Hardware & Software Reviews,

                 News and More at Bright Hub. BRIGHT HUB, 9 Nov. 2009. Web. 13 Oct. 2011. 

                 <http://www.brighthub.com/science/genetics/articles/22210.aspx>.

 

12) Simmons, Danielle. "Genes and Identity: Human Genetic Engineering | Learn Science at 

                  Scitable." Nature Publishing Group : Science Journals, Jobs, and Information. Scitable

                  by Nature Education, 2008. Web. 13 Oct. 2011. <http://www.nature.com/scitable

                  /topicpage/genetic-inequality-human-genetic-engineering-768>.

 

My topic is genetically designing babies or pre-implantation genetic diagnosis. This is where a parent can choose the genetic makeup of their child and can decide between hair color, eye color, gender, and so on. The genes are implanted into the embryo during in vitro fertilization. I want to focus on how far we have progressed in successfully genetically designing babies, how for we could go in the future, and the bioethics behind the practice.

I have found two online articles, two books from the library, and an online article with a video interview as resources on my topic. The article with the video interview has been most helpful with explaining what the latest technology is and some of the debate that goes along with it. The books I rented from the library, including Unzipped Genes and Designing Babies, were both written in the late 90's and will not be very helpful in describing the latest technological developments, but are full of discussion on the bioethics of birth.  The other two journal articles I found are both packed full of information on the bioethics concerning human embryos.

I will run into a lot of challenges when writing this paper. The first challenge I have already encountered is finding up to date resources to use for my topic. One way I could solve this would be to ask my professors if they could point me in the right direction. I keep finding sources from the late 90's and early 2000's but I need something from the '10 to '11 range for my paper to be accurate. Another challenge will be my general struggle with writing in the first place. I could go to the writing center a couple times or just ask for help from my friends if it gets bad. I also feel like it will be a lot better now that I can pick what topic I want to talk about.

research resources

1) "Human--animal embryos" by Duncan Wilson

Wilson, Duncan. "Human--animal embryos." Biological Sciences Review Apr. 2008: 21+. General OneFile. Web. 21 Sep. 2011.

Document URL
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?&id=GALE%7CA178348120&v=2.1&u=clemson_itweb&it=r&p=ITOF&sw=w

This is an article that discusses embryos and how scientists have tried to use them for genetic testing

2) "Embryo ethics" by Robert P. George

George, Robert P. "Embryo ethics." Daedalus 137.1 (2008): 23+. Academic OneFile. Web. 21 Sep. 2011.

Document URL
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?&id=GALE%7CA175286831&v=2.1&u=clemson_itweb&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w

This article discusses testing on embryos and the ethics behind it

3) Designing Babies by Roger Gosden

This is a book in the library I found that is titled my exact research paper topic.  However, it was made in the late 90's so it might not be as relevant as I hoped.

4) Unzipped Genes by Martine Rothblatt

This is another book i found in the library that discusses genetically designing babies as well.  There is a lot of usable information in this one that I think will help a lot.

5) http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/03/03/earlyshow/health/main4840346.shtml

This is a link to a video of an interview with a scientist who actually does design babies. He can choose the sex as well as other traits and I think this video is a lot more recent and gives way for me to find out more about what this doctor and his company does.

research topics

I would like to research genetically engineering babies. This interests me because I am a genetics major and genetics is probably my favorite field of science. There is a lot of controversy over this topic and I feel like with our progress in technology, designer babies is something that will become possible within our lifetime.  I am  not quite sure where I stand on the topic but I would enjoy researching it to figure it out.  It would be beneficial for curing genetic diseases such as Huntington's Disease or Tay-Sachs, but at the same time I feel like genetically engineering babies to be faster, stronger, and smarter than regular humans is a risky area we might want to avoid. Being a genetics major, I have easy access to a lot of research material that would help me out a lot with this topic.

The second topic I am considering is researching the Obama health care plan. There is a lot of controversy over health care and I feel like there would be a lot of material to research and talk about. This affects me because I want to be a doctor someday. I really don't know a lot about this topic but I feel like I should. Using this as my topic would help me catch up and figure out what a future in the medical field will be like. Through my research I might possibly decide to change career paths or keep going strong with what I am doing.

Assignment 4: image and thesis for visual rhetoric assignment

This advertisement utilizes the public's trust in doctors, affinity for celebrities, and the page layout of its certain images to persuade the audience to smoke Camel cigarettes.

Assignment 2

These vending machines that were placed around college campuses and malls are actually donation boxes for the Gun Control Alliance that works to make South Africa a safer place. The logos of this advertisement is that buying a gun in South Africa is as easy as picking one up at a vending machine for a couple coins. The pathos of this advertisement make me feel alarmed that the ability to kill someone is bought as frequently and casually as buying a bag of chips or a soda. The variety of the guns as well as just the guns themselves creates a feeling of fear for the people who live in South Africa.  I also feel that putting money in the machine full of guns would make you realize any random person walking along the street could pick one up with no problem. Using a vending machine is a ten second transaction.  This makes the idea that buying a gun is a purchase motivated by impulse.  If you have the impulse to buy a gun, the impulse to use it would be just as easy to follow through with. It's just scary. The advertisement uses ethos by putting their name and logo underneath the main message. Putting their signature right beside the message shows credibility and shows that they really believe in what they are telling us.

Assignment 1: Images

The images we see through out the day are an important part of our lives. They inform and persuade us and we attach the images to memories.  Advertisements, for example, are images we see constantly. They are on television, road signs, magazines, newspapers, websites, etc.  How effective advertisements are depends on how much they persuade you and how well you remember the advertisement.  I feel the more outlandish or ridiculous the images are, the less likely you will forget the advertisement.  An example would be the old Tanqueray commercial with a character named Tony Sinclair.  Tony Sinclair is made out to be a highly sophisticated eccentric millionaire that likes to party and has classy tastes.  He loves his Tanqueray gin. Even though Tony Sinclair isn't even a real person, the image of him drinking Tanqueray in a nice suit persuades you to think Tanqueray is high quality drink reserved for the best. Everyone desires success and a higher social status. This image says to me if I want to be successful and party too, Tanqueray is the best choice of beverage for me. Overall I'd say it is a successful advertisement. It even got me to try it.

Other advertisers since then have used the same image of success to sell their products. The most annoying ones are the Direct T.V. commercials. They've used the eastern European guy with the baby giraffe, and the Asian with the giant panda in basically the same type of commercials. I think they made them that annoying so you wouldn't forget it. The fact that they used the wrong Asian for the commercial is something that drives me crazy. You can't shoot a commercial about an Asian with that personality without the Asian from the Hangover. It just doesn't work. However, I'll always remember Direct T.V. because they screwed up that commercial. I guess the advertisement worked after all.