Category Archives: Uncategorized

Reuse it

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Although it might not necessarily be a skill, one thing I have learned about at Highland Orchards reuse. Some people might call it hording or being cheap, but one of the interesting cultural practices we have at Highland is reuse. I call it cultural because it is not an official policy, but many of the employees and all of the managers follow the same code. Basically, we seem to find a spot to put anything, from an old board or pipe to a load of blacktop. If you look around the premise, it often seems like we don’t throw anything away- and I think overwhelmingly we really don’t generate that much trash.

Keeping things is only one side of the story. The whole purpose of hanging on to things that have the potential to be reused is to, you guessed it-reuse it. When working on building projects most people think “what can I get at Home Depot?”, but throughout my life, I first think “can I find that at the orchard?”.

One of my favorite “reuse it” projects was the greenhouse I built for my Cantaloupe crop in 2013. Thinking back, I don’t think I had to buy a single thing to make the greenhouse as every single part was reused.

To build it, I first constructed a frame out of scrap 2×4’s. Once my frame was done, I sealed it in using plastic construction drop cloth that we use for covering floors while painting. I found an old storm door and used that to make an access into the house. In order to keep temperatures warm, but not too warm, I built a makeshift heating and ventilation system. To provide the heat, I piped in the waste heat from the dryer at my house using reused aluminum vent pipes. To prevent the greenhouse from overheating on warm spring days, I set up a ventilation system. This system used a thermostat taken out of an old furnace, a box fan, a broken extension cord, and a vent from an air handling system. I wired it together and I had an automatic vent that engaged at a certain peak temperature. The system worked well, as I had practically 100% germination for over 1000 melon seeds using only reclaimed materials.

Without the salvaged materials that were saved at the orchard, my greenhouse would have been much too expensive and impractical. However, keeping so much stuff does come at a cost. Often workspaces are cluttered and it is very difficult to find things. This causes a lot of frustration for workers who need to get a job done quickly. I have recently wondered about the economics of reusing things. Is it cheaper to get rid of scrap and used materials in favor of having a more streamlined operation? I think it would be very interesting study since reusing materials usually saves money in terms of cost of materials, but it takes up space and impedes rate of labor and productivity.

 

Sewer Systems

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One of the less favorable jobs I’ve had at work over the years is fixing sewer backups. I want to apologize in advanced for anyone who is grossed out by this topic. My reason for writing about it anyway is that sewer systems are in fact essential infrastructure in our lives. They allow for convenience and improved sanitation. Before the advent of the modern sewer system, disease was spread through contaminated drinking and bathing water. Sadly, certain underdeveloped countries still lack adequate systems. I plan to discuss what makes up such a system,and how it works.

Not many people know what actually happens when you flush a toilet. Fortunately (or unfortunately) I have spent a little time working on the systems that manage our waste and want to share how it works. I don’t have experience with the urban setups like they have here at Penn State, so I will just talk about rural/suburban infrastructure.

When you flush a toilet or use a sink, or take a shower, the effluent flows down, through a “trap” and then through a network of downward sloping pipes. The trap is basically a u shaped piece of pipe that is designed to “trap” some of the water flowing through it. The point of this is to block the passage of sewer gasses from backtracking into your bathroom and making it smell bad. The pipes are sloped (as a rule of thumb 1/4 inch drop per foot) so that gravity does all of the work moving the effluent along. Old pipes were made of cast iron and new pipes are PVC. The drain pipes from each toilet shower bath and sink link together and flow downwards until they reach outside of the house. At this point, the main sewer line goes into what is called a septic tank. The septic tank is a large buried concrete box designed separate solids from liquids and allow for bacteria to consume the waste. Over time healthy bacteria will consume much of the solids and dissolve it into liquid form. On the opposite end of the sewer main entrance there is a outlet pipe. All of the liquid from the septic tank flows out of outlet pipe and into the distribution box. The so called “d-box” is pretty much just a fitting that allows for multiple drainpipes in the drain field. The liquid flows from the d box into perforated drain pipe ( pipe with holes). These drain pipes are under ground like the rest of the system and are run in long lengths away from the septic tank. The purpose of these is to allow for the liquid to drain into the ground. Although this may seem odd, bacteria and fungi in the soil work to digest the liquid and any chemicals in it and return it to pure water. One has to pay careful attention to the type of soil the drain field is made from because sandy ones drain too quickly and therefore do not give the bacteria time to clean up the water.

 

MLK Letter from Birmingham Jail

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MLK reframes his civic disobedience through the acknowledgement that current law need not be the absolute judge of moral correctness. He criticizes the fact that most Americans would rather stay the same and keep order rather than promote and extend justice to all citizens.

It strikes me that the first step to nonviolence is to make sure injustices exist. This makes the movement rhetorically pleasing to the logical observer. All other steps of MLK nonviolence are aimed to build rhetorical rapport with the nation with respect to the individual and or movement.

Education in Malcom X Speech

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Education was such an important component of this speech because it has the potential to break the cycle of control and oppression black America was experiencing. Through education, advocates could make effective and reasonable action to attain equal rights. So far in the history of the protest for black American equality, success was limited because people were not educated about the past. Also, through education, one can gain the perspective of other people around the country and build on their ideas. On top of this, education will build unity of the movement.

Additionally, education will help the lives of the affected population, because it will help them build identity and self respect. Through education, they can realize the potential offered to the rest of the society and end the cycle of oppression. With out bolstering the racist education system, African Americans lack the tools necessary to achieve self improvement and therefore remain in the state of disadvantage when compared to the rest of the country. Without the right to an equal and comprehensive education, African Americans are unable to lead a true civic life.

Draft Essay

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ram

The Dodge truck line has historically advertised their products as being tough, economical and practical. For example, in the 1950’s Dodge focused on calling their trucks “Job-Rated”, and previewed their trucks being used in adverse conditions. So, the aim of the campaign was to use logic to sell their product. Although logic does play an important role in the more current “Find Yourself” Ram advertisement, its focus is to use pathetic persuasion by appealing to aspects of the American ideology of masculinity. The “Find Yourself” Dodge Ram truck advertisement expertly uses a presentation of American ideology of masculinity to create a complex and appealing persuasion device with pathetic and logical invention.

 

To understand how this advertisement uses ideology to persuade its audience, both the ideology and audience must me defined. There are three key ideological assumptions made in this ad. The audience believes that trucks are manly, fathers should teach their sons manly things, and camping is fun or enriching. Trucks, specifically pickup trucks, are vehicles that were initially designed for the occupational needs of traditionally male jobs such as carpentry, farming, and construction. Men in these types of blue collar, working class jobs are considered masculine based off of American ideology of masculinity. Trucks have therefore developed a connection with what society views as masculine men, and have become a symbol of masculinity in society. The next ideological assumption this ad makes of the viewers is that they believe that fathers are responsible for passing down masculinity to their son. It assumes that viewers believe a father and son should bond in a way that the son learns lessons of masculinity. Is there a better way for a father to do this than by camping with his son? The final ideological assumption is that the viewers believe that camping is a fun or enriching activity. Although camping is not an activity everyone enjoys, it is for a certain portion of American society something that holds particular nostalgic status. Camping is an activity often done with family or with another close knit group of people, and it is a break from normal life. So, camping becomes a time that stands out in one’s mind and has a particular emotional connection. Additionally, camping can be a showcase of certain manly pursuits, tying it to reasonable extent to the ideology of masculinity. From these ideological assumptions, one can logically determine that the target audience is middle aged males, likely fathers, who went camping as a child, and appreciate a pickup truck as both an occupational necessity and symbol of masculinity.

The advertisement’s ability to represent and subsequently utilize ideology in its persuasion is profound. The overall message of the advertisement is as follows: The owner of a new RAM truck will be empowered by its capabilities to participate in activities classified as masculine according to the American ideology of masculinity. This particular ad was published in various magazines, especially automotive ones like Car and Driver. This is significant because RAM chose a readership that is likely to fit the target audience of the ad.

To begin with, the style of the ad itself works to develop this message. Although it may not be self-evident, the style is mimicking late 1930’s Works Progress Administration posters done for the National Parks. The retro look effectively simplifies the image, just like the outdoors and camping is symbolic of a simpler life. It also utilizes RAM published an ad campaign similar to this one the previous year (2012) using the same style but more explicitly making the connection to National parks, particularly parks in Texas. The 2013 campaign shifted focus from Texas and gave the ads more national appeal, although it still appears to be set in the south western United States. This effectively broadens the scope of the audience simply by making the setting more vague.

The setting is essential to rest of the ad because it caters to the purpose of the product. On a very basic level, a vehicle is used to help people get places. It provides people with places. Therefore the choice of the truck’s location is representative of what the truck is doing for the driver. The fact that the image portrays the truck in the apparent no man’s land surrounded by a beautiful geography, is a testament to what is possible with this vehicle. This is significant for two reasons. First, it appeals to the audience’s emotional connection to camping and the outdoors. Also, it appeals to the logic of the vehicle. A buyer expects that a truck is rugged and capable, and the image acts as evidence of such. The text on the ad “Find yourself where no one else can” supports both the emotional connection and logical connection to the truck because it states that the truck can provide its driver with trips to the beautiful outdoors. However, it also fuels the ideology that trucks are masculine vehicles. The ad also answers the question of “ Why is this Dodge truck better than a Ford(or Chevy etc.)?” by alluding to the fact that it is more capable the rest by making the experience portrayed seem exclusively for the owners of a Ram.

Finding yourself has an additional meaning in this ad, besides the obvious of getting to some place. Finding yourself can also mean focusing your identity. In this way, the ad illustrates how in American society, because of ideology, owning a truck can become part of your image. It encourages its viewers to build this image, but exclusively with Dodge trucks. It is essential to note that Americans often exhibit brand loyalty with trucks. Since trucks mean more in society than just something to get from place to place, owners can form emotional attachment to certain brands because of performance, reliability or even onlookers perception of their vehicles. This is significant because the ad is simply trying to reinforce ideology already in existence to win customers with a product image that fits in that ideology.

The image of the boy and father effectively uses pathetic persuasion to the ends of tying positive emotions to the ownership of a Ram truck. The advertisement uses the established ideology of how a boy should be raised, and portrays the truck as a vital tool to complete the task correctly. It seems to ask the question “Will your son get the proper upbringing of going camping with his father?”, and then answer it by showing how simple it could be with a Ram.

The choice to have the truck pulling a travel trailer is effective for several reasons. First of all, it shows the strength of the vehicle. It shows why the audience needs a Ram truck, not just a family car. Also, it represents that the Ram truck is versatile. It can be useful occupationally and recreationally. One interesting thing to note is that the trailer pictured is much smaller than the truck could potentially handle. That size of a trailer probably weighs 2 or 3 tons, much less than the 15 ton capacity of the truck, and could be pulled by a smaller ½ ton truck (Ram 1500). This is significant because it shows modesty. The owner did not buy the largest trailer he could. Even though Dodge claims their image is exclusive, they want to be inclusive about what kind of people own the truck. The truck might be necessary for business, but a travel trailer is not, and is therefore a luxury item (although the truck could be to). Dodge truck brand has attempted to show modesty to some extent throughout its history, highlighting its economy, or claiming Ram truck owners are in some way modest. Modesty is important in this ad because camping is essentially modest living (although one could spend a lot of money on the activity, it is one of the cheapest popular vacation methods) and therefore does not upset the ideological notion of camping. Also, a more modest, inclusive ad does not limit its audience to people who seek luxury in products. Thus, the choice of including the travel trailer in the advertisement adds pathetic and logical invention and deepens persuasive power and connection to American ideology.

The statistics of the truck are important to note. The prospective buyer of the truck may not be interested in the ideology of why he should by the truck, and therefor simply care about capabilities. The choice to include towing capacity, torque, engine type and displacement, and warranty makes the ad useful to people like contractors looking to buy fleet vehicles. The choice to include these statistics makes the ad appeal to the practicality of buyers, that is, it provides concrete evidence about how the truck meets expectations that are set by the abstract ideas of the picture and text in the rest of the ad.

In all, this advertisement uses ideology to deepen the roots of rhetorical invention to reach a broad audience and attempt to persuade them to buy a Ram truck. It projects a message about truck ownership that is generally inclusive in terms of who can experience the benefits, but attempts to make their brand like the exclusive producer of quality vehicles.