TOW #14 "The Crime of the Ages- Who Did It?" (political cartoon)

                This World War I era political cartoon portrays the major European countries involved in the foreground. Each of them, represented by people, are pointing towards whomever they believe is the most responsible for causing the war. Most countries are pointing at Germany as it was thought to be the main aggressor in the war when it invaded neutral Belgium. The Allied powers showed this clearly when they forced Germany to give up land and pay reparations when the war came to an end with the Treaty of Versailles. However, what is in the background is a large hand that represents other countries’ views on the situation, is pointing towards an impaled body labeled “The Peace of Europe.” This shows how others think the main problem of this war is that it has killed off the peacefulness of Europe. The author’s choice to have that in the background could represent how the finger pointing and naming of names being done by the Allied and Central powers has overshadowed the real problem of peace, which is why the countries are in the foreground. The crime of the ages is that the peace in Europe died all on account of one assassination. The soon to be Austria- Hungarian leader and his wife were killed by Serbians, which triggered Austria- Hungary to take action, as well as Germany, Serbia, Russia, and eventually many more. The tangling alliances and militarism brought the rest into the war. The spider web of connections is shown in the pointing of hands. Blame cannot be placed on only one country.

TOW #13 "Facebook Preventing Drunk Photos" (article)

                In this BuzzFeed article, the author talks about the topic of Facebook having a new ability to tell the difference between a drunk picture of you and a sober picture of you, and prevent the drunk ones from being uploaded. They had an interview with the person that oversees the Facebook Artificial Intelligence Research department, Yann LeCun. This qualified person explained how the technology that would be in use is the same as the technology they use to suggest things you might like. This technology is composed of deep learning algorithms that will be able to decide whether you will regret the image you are uploading the next morning. “’Imagine that you had an intelligent digital assistant which would mediate your interaction with your friends,’ he says, adding, ‘and also with content on Facebook.’” The upside is obvious. Imagine how much embarrassment would be saved when you don’t have to worry about your boss or family members seeing you absurdly drunk in pictures you uploaded on a whim. There are many different kinds of people that would benefit from this. The downside is, with a little added humor on the author’s part, would be that “after the machines get so clever that there’s an inevitable robot uprising, there probably won’t be any photos of you at all.”

TOW #12 "Gunn's Golden Rules" (IRB- 1st half)

Tim Gunn wrote the novel, Gunn’s Golden Rules: Life’s Little Lessons for Making It Work (with Ada Calhoun), with a definite purpose in mind. From reading it, the message is quite clear. In the book, Gunn takes you through moments in his life that changed his ways of thinking. He explores positive moments as well as some negatives, hoping others can learn from his own mistakes. A main component to the message is his view on manners. “Good manners lead to better relationships, more career success, and less personal stress.” (Gunn, 5). He then continues to portray the purpose of his writing. Even with the multiple events he recalls, the point is never lost. Each experience reflects his intentions on the reader learning from his mistakes and moments, while being able to connect with some as well. The author’s interpretation of things plays a great role in the book. Gunn’s Golden Rules: Life’s Little Lessons for Making It Work is a non-fiction book that is written from one point of view, so it is bound to have somewhat of an opinion behind things. For example, Gunn talks about why he loves to receive gift cards. “…they’re way better than crazy objects that I then have to move around my house and hide in closets.” (Gunn, 105). Not everyone would agree with that statement, showing that it is clearly his opinion about receiving gifts. Other things that are of his own interpretation are his descriptions of other people. Gunn loves fashion and can therefore describe a person’s outfit accurately, along with his opinion on it. He is careful not to allow his opinion to skew the visualization of the person, though. Since it is autobiographical, there are plenty of opinions about things, situations, and people he encounters.