More Fallacies

Today went by swiftly. We read a book about arguments. The book was not the typical book that I thought it would be. I thought that there would be dull instructions and definitions concerning arguments. However, it was actually entertaining and written well enough to possess my attention. The only problem was that my eyes were heavy as if someone was pulling them and no matter how much I tried to stay aware, I ended up dozing off...SEVERAL TIMES. The book basically reviewed the same fallacies that we had already covered but it also included ones that we did not learn. I realized that in AP Lang I learn the name of the things that I am familiar with. For example, the Fallacy of Popularity is when one argues that something should be done or is correct because lots of people do it. As a teen, we often use this fallacy against our parents in order to receive something or to be allowed to do something of our interest. We'd say that we should be able to get a certain type of shoe because everyone else has them or a certain type of phone. My point is that we are more intelligent than we think. This boosts my confidence a little because sometimes I feel as if I am ignorant. Overall, today was great.

FIGHTS AND FALLACIES

Today was an interesting day. We were instructed to come up with skits that represented the logical fallacy given to us. My group was not ideal for me. I was the only girl in a group of infuriating boys; however, I endured it for the sake of my grade. The process was remarkably difficult. It was challenging trying to act out Post Hoc which is when one thing happens that is completely unrelated to an occurring situation but one argues that it is the reason for that occurring situation. For example, "Every time that rooster crows, the sun comes up. That rooster must be very powerful and important!" The rooster has nothing to do with the rising of the sun. In fact, the rooster crows after the sun has risen. It is important to farmers but it has no godly power. The skit that my group came up with was simple and probably tedious to others. This was fine because I felt that our skit got straight to the point whereas other groups confused me. I could not determine which fallacy they were given so I had to make educated guesses. Me and one of the guys decided we would act like we failed a test in our AP class while the other two guys fought over something entirely different, a"girlfriend." Our argument was that since the AP class is hard and stressful, the students decided to fight each other. Of course, that didn't make sense which is why it is a fallacy. Overall, the class was fun.

What NOT To Do

Today was another exceptional and productive day even though I was exhausted. I felt the constant urge to close my eyes and take a well-deserved nap but I knew that I needed to stay attentive. Today's discussion was about what not to use when composing an argumentive essay or when having an argument. It is ideal to have a strong or somewhat strong argument than a weak one so the fallacies that we discussed should not be present within one's argument. We wrote the names of the flaws along with their definitions. I was appalled by the fact that there is such a thing. Usually, when I argue(with the intention of winning by any means) I don't think about the mistakes or the weak points in my argument. I just feel the need to get my point across. I would go into detail of what the names and definitions of the fallacies are but there are too many to talk about. However, there was one that I thought was interesting; I noticed the use of it in arguments that I have read. It is called Red Herring. The red herring is basically when someone is arguing about one thing and then throw in a side issue to distract the opposer or reader. An example would be when your mom notices that your room is untidy and you start telling her how stressful school was. You are basically distracting her from the real problem, your room. After we finished taking notes, we were told to identify what logical fallacy was being utilized in the examples given. At first, I couldn't seem to identify them correctly but I soon caught on. I hope that tomorrow will be just as good as today.

NEW YEAR, SAME CLASS

Today, class was favorable. It began with the teacher's request for us to reflect upon 2019 and then to state what our goals were for 2020. My goals are to be less strict on myself and to stop trying to be perfect. I feel that I can still attain greater things without driving myself far past the limit. I also hope to be able to finally enjoy the rest of my teenage years before the time comes where I have the responsibilities of an adult. I don't get out of the house often, mainly because I don't have companions but I hope to do so. After the conclusion of the first assignment, we were then presented with a video. The video was inspiring, motivational and relatable. It was a video of a TED talk speaker. The speaker spoke about the hardships that he faced in his early life and how he overcame them without being smart or talented. He stated that you don't need to be smart or talent to be successful, you just need to put in the effort. I agreed 100% with him but I felt that he should have made it clear that you can be those things and still be successful; that you still should want to collect information and be knowledgeable rather than just thinking that if you put in the effort, knowledge is nothing. I feel that someone may get the wrong message if they don't understand what the speaker is conveying. His speech is for those who try their best to be smart and who gain information but no matter what, nothing is coming from it. They began to feel like a failure even though they are doing everything they can. That is when effort becomes significant. Overall, I really enjoyed class and I feel so inspired.

Ugly Sweater Party

Today, I did not attend class because I bought a ticket to join the party that was taking place in the gym. The party was ok except the pizza was not free, not even the drinks yet many people bought $3 tickets. Also, the music was not of my taste so for the most part I stood around and watched the multiple scenes unfolding around me. The good news was that we were able to get out of school earlier than usual. Overall, today was ok.

EQT PROJECTS DAY 2

Today, I was able to present my project. It was kind of difficult finding controversy within medical bioengineering but eventually, I found controversy in stem cells which is a part of it. I had to do plenty of research in order to find why the idea of stem cells is controversial rather than why I think it is. I believe most research was done in order to find 2 events concerning stem cells. We had a time limit of how far back in time we could go so I had to stay within that limit. I believe my presentation turned out good. I presented well by making eye contact and not reading from the board as I would have normally done from being nervous. The project itself was not too difficult but difficult enough to ensure that one knows their topic because they have done so much research. I liked the others’ presentations although some were questionable to a large extent. However, it is not my place to correct them so my opinion is kept to myself. Overall, today was great and I hope we will be able to finish all of the presentations tomorrow.

EQT PROJECTS DAY 1

Today was the first day of the EQT projects. For the project, we were told to look up a controversial topic and create a PowerPoint explaining its history, controversy, supporters, opposers and etc. The first person to present took too long and over-explained their topic. As a result, a student assigned to present today could not present. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the projects and topics. I learned a lot from them that I did not know before even though I had prior knowledge of them. Overall, today was intriguing.

WHAT DO YOU SEA?

Today, I was not present in class along with most of my classmates because we were on a field trip. The field trip was located at the Dolphin Island Sea Lab. It was all new to me because I had never been to the lab let alone do I remember going to Dolphin Island for any occasion. On arrival, it looked as if it were abandoned. We saw a big building that we hoped that we would be in but that was not the case. We were then split into 2 groups and was guided to a room with desks covered by deceased sea animals. Our speaker was very kind and humorous. He told jokes and made sea life appear to be similar to the life of humans although the two are different. I learned that sea cucumber can turn their bodies into liquid and that they are the coolest animals ever. I learned a lot more but I can't recall at the moment. After being told so many unbelievable things about the ocean and its creatures, we were taken to the lab to dissect squids. I for one hate all wet, squishy, unfamiliar things so I was not keen on touching the squid or any other animal that was in the lab. At the beginning of the dissection, we were told to lay the squid down and separate its tentacles and legs.  We slowly but surely made it to the part where there would be cutting. We took out the esophagus, the squid's mouth and then finally we cut open the part above the eyeballs. Surprisingly, I was the one doing the cutting and touching. I had to muster up enough courage to complete it so I was proud of myself. We then learned how to determine whether the squid we had was a female or a male. I was so happy that my partner and I received a male. We saw the 3 hearts and where the ink is located. At the end of the lab, we were allowed to use the ink and write our names with it. I enjoyed the new experience even though I was petrified.

EASY PEASY

Today was an extremely permissive day. The teacher didn't teach anything but he did go in-depth on how our project should be done. He did this by using students' topics and searching them up on credible sources. After the demonstrations, he allowed us to complete our projects in class.

Mini Pilot

Today, we were assigned a bellringer that involved us writing about an important event that occurred in our life. Instead of writing it as the first person, we wrote it in the third person. The most important thing that has occurred in my life so far was me being able to fly a plane. I described the experience and what writing it in the third person uncovered me about myself. I learned that on that day, I grew mentally. I became stronger and overcame one of my greatest fears. Next, the teacher then blessed us with the good news that we will not be taking a test for our EQT but doing a project. The project itself is simple and I believe that I will acquire a lot from it. Overall, today was excellent.

Absent

I didn't attend school today due to family issues. I wish I could have attended because this week is a review week for the EQT.

DEFEAT

Today we were assigned a multiple choice quiz. I took it and of course, I failed. Miserably. Luckily, the teacher did not put it in the grade book because my grade would look dreadful. After observing all of our tests, the teacher went over the test and explained the answers. I felt idiotic for not choosing the right answer because it was pretty simple after he explained it. Overall, today was depressing.

Fear & Kisses

Today, the class began with a quick write concerning fear. We were instructed to compose a paragraph about our greatest fear. My greatest fear is being a failure. I have become so accustomed to high expectations or instances where I make a perfect grade; if I were to make anything less, I am then filled with disappointment and regret. Because of this fear, I am always unsatisfied with my actions. I never know when I am going to mess up and I fear mistakes prompting me to not want to expand on anything. I suppose you can say that I have trapped myself within a box of safety. Following this task, we read and analyzed poems. The first poem regarded the poet's fear of death. The other poem was about the poet's disappointment in a well-expected kiss. She loved her significant other and vice versa, but the kiss was not what she dreamed of. Each poem had a few questions to follow in which we completed and graded. The last assignment of the day was to compose a poem that will be entered into a contest. It is hard for me to put words on paper so this task is quite challenging. Overall, today was transcendent.