Final Blog Posting

Lessons Learned
Writing a research paper is not easy. Especially when you work full-time and have other classes to give attention to. That being said, I think for me an important lesson to take away from this is that time management and organization are critical to reaching time sensitive due dates. Also, the quality of the sources is crucial to the integrity of the paper. 

Advice
I think the best advice I could give would be to pace yourself and don't be afraid to make mistakes along the way. For me finding good sources was fairly easy, but transitioning the information from source to paper I found extremely difficult. So try and experiment with different ways of using your source information. As for what database to use; use whatever works for you but make sure the quality pertains to your paper.

I'm not sure I would have done things differently to be honest. I think being that it was such a struggle for me to get this done makes the experience more enlightening to me for future use.

What two areas of your paper need the most work?

I think just my overall structure needs a lot of work. I have the essay map at home which is helpful, I just need to put the time in (having Monday off will be helpful).

It's really easy for me to forget my argument while I'm skimming through my sources looking for a cite, which I think showed in my draft.

I was all over place in my intro and didn't mention my thesis until the second page.
I think my sources are great, but I just need to focus more on relaying that information in my paper. 

I also need to add a lot more, I was only able to write about 2-3 pages for my first draft.

Close Reading of Film Stills in I, Robot

This film still from I, Robot takes place in the beginning of the movie. It shows two robots working as sanitation workers. It also shows a robot randomly walking in the street. I chose this still because it represents and shows that robots have taken over everyday, blue collar jobs that humans usually and currently do. It also shows that robots walk amongst the humans in the movie.



The second still I chose clearly reflects the changing tide of newer versus older. The older robot is being taken away and replaced by the new "better" model. In the background you can see the older models of robots that have already been taken away. I think the still draws a parallel to the humans versus robots, as in humans are the older models until something potentially better comes along.

Although it is nice to watch a movie for a project and reflect on the movie, I do find it difficult to truly relate to a hollywood movie that is clearly exaggerated to the full extent. For me nothing is different in slowing down the film to a few stills rather than just watching it without slowing it down. I really have not found this helpful for my paper in anyway. I can try to guess why a scene was shot a certain way, but at the end of the day my assumptions on the scene are my opinion. It's all interpretive.

My Milestone #3 Research Game Plan

 I currently have 1 film review (Journalistic), 2 encyclopedia articles and 1 Miscellanious source (The actual movie)

Type of Sources Still Needed                   Where to find them
2 Scholarly Articles---------------------------From Academic Search Complete or JSTOR
1 Book (Chapter) -----------------------------Physical copy
1 Journalistic Article ------------------------ From Lexis Nexus
1 Misc source -------------------------------- Google, Wikipedia, etc.

Blog Assignment #1

Robots and robotics are fascinating things built by great human minds. It may not seem like it, but we humans have been using some form of them for over a thousand years.

“Automatons—mechanisms that perform predefined tasks with some degree

of autonomy—are the early predecessors of robots and have existed for

more than 1,000 years.” (Desiano 169).

By using automatons or robots, we have been able to build a great many things and become a more productive society in terms of manufacturing. With the ongoing evolution of artificial intelligence and all the current technological advancements being made, what kind of impact will that have on the current and future labor force and job markets? Using the film I, Robot as well as several popular and scholarly articles I will argue that the portrayal of robots is an  inaccurate depiction of our current and future labor force.

Author: Salvator Domenick Desiano

Title: Robotics

Journal: Computer Sciences

Source: Gale Reference Library

In this article Desiano provides a rich historical background for how robots and robotics got started. By doing this Desiano lays a groundwork to build upon and support his argument, that technological advances have come rather quickly in the last century and their uses are so important for society as a whole. He describes the uses for various fields, such as medical, manufacturing, and scientific.

I feel like adding an historical element to my research can only enrich my research paper as a whole, regardless of my opinion.  

Author: Jennifer Croissant and Selma Sabanovic

Title: Robotics and Social Robotics

Journal: Encyclopedia of Contemporary American Social Issues

Source: Gale Reference Library

This article has almost a completely opposite directive than the previous one. It argues that although robots have replaced humans in the workplace at certain points in time, the emergence of new technologies and robotics in the workplace allow for the creation of higher paying and higher skilled jobs to maintain and design and implement these new robots in that environment. “So, consider the automatic grocery-store checkout system. There are usually four stations and one clerk, and it seems to save the wages of at least three checkout clerks to have customers themselves using the automatic system. But the costs of design, implementation, and upkeep of these systems may be very high: the wages of one programmer may be more than that of the four clerks replaced.” (Croissant & Sabonovic 1609)

I chose this source for the alternative view of robots in the workplace.

Welcome

          Welcome to my blog.  My name is Michael Hechme. I am a twenty-nine year old student at LaGuardia Community College, and the end of this Spring semester will mark one year that I have been a student here.  My current major is Liberal Arts, so that I can explore some different interests and see where it might take me.

           I work for a Landscape Design Firm based in Brooklyn, where a major part of my job is to install and maintain high-end penthouse gardens throughout Manhattan. I really enjoy what I do, but I wanted to challenge myself academically; which is why I decided to go back to school. I also have a background in furniture restoration and soap making. 

           Science fiction and comedic films are some of my favorites, as well as comic book based movies. I confess that I'm not the biggest reader, mostly because I believe that you shouldn't read something unless you have an interest in it. Reading should be fun, right? Not dull and boring. That being said, I do enjoy reading about history and science fiction. 

            I tend to be a bit torn with the question on whether I am a technology optimist or a technology pessimist. I think technology is fantastic from an entertainment perspective, but I feel as though we have or are becoming disconnected with things like being outdoors and enjoying the outdoors, or just simply being active. I think social relationships have drastically changed in such a small amount of time. We've become distant from each other. We live in a world where we can hide behind our screens rather then have an actual social interaction. We want information and we want it as fast as possible; but for what reasons? I feel as though we are forgetting to live in the now and enjoy the moment we are currently in. So I guess I'm a technology pessimist after all. I think most people today seem to be on the more optimistic side of technology.