Considering Types

In this post I will discuss the types of writing I will be using in my public argument for Project 3.

Jacqui Barker. "Sunset Reeds, North Shore Lincoln Port" 3/11/2013.  Creative Commons Attribution.

Position Argument

I think this type of argument would be effective for my project. I would begin by stating the pros of the treatment and end with discussing the cons and then refuting them. It would be effective because I would pose a stand on electrical stimulation as a controversial topic. 

Casual Argument

I don't think a casual argument would be appropriate for my topic. Because I'm trying to convince actual physical therapists to use this treatment, a casual argument wouldn't be very useful. This type of argument also wouldn't work very well because the readers will already have a good understanding of the treatment and therefore they wouldn't need much guidance.

Evaluative Argument

I think this argument could be very effective because I would be able to show an evaluation of the successfulness of electrical therapy. I could creative a well written sentence that argues for it and evaluate it from there showing the studies and my personal experience that I have gathered/will gather. 

Proposal Argument

I don't think this type of argument would be very useful for the point that I'm trying to get across. There really is nothing I would be able to propose about a solution to electrical stimulation because I'm trying to show that there isn't much of a problem with it in the first place.

Refutation Argument

I don't think this argument would be very useful because I'm trying to show that the treatment is effective and would not want refuting it to be the main focus of my argument. Refuting it will definitely be a brief portion of my project but this argument style as a whole is not what I'm looking for.

Reflection
I reviewed Morgan's plan post and considering type post. I also reviewed Savannah's plan post and considering type post. From these posts I realized that all of the projects are going to be very different compared to the diversity in the last project. Morgan's plan was very different from mine but we had pretty some types of arguments in common for our considering types post. From Savannah's posts I found that since both of our arguments are based off of science that we have a similar plan and chose the same types of arguments as being effective for our projects. This is because our arguments are fact based. 

My Rhetorical Action Plan

In this post I will discuss my rhetorical action plan for Project 3.

Zack Tartufo. "Logo of Simple Plan Foundation" Oct 14 2012.  Threshold of Originality.

Audience

In my argument I am going to try and persuade physical therapists and patients of physical therapy that electrical stimulation is an effective treatment. 

Knowledge: At the very least my audience has a general knowledge about different types of physical therapy treatments and how they are used. Obviously, the actual PTs that read my article will have much more knowledge on the topic than the patients that are looking to receive treatment. It is likely that the PTs will have heard about electrical therapy and how it works. The patients on the other hand will most likely have very minimal knowledge about it.

Values: The two audiences will most likely share the same values. These values include the health and safety of the patient receiving the treatment (that the treatment won't cause any weird side effects), that the treatment is actually going to work, and that it is efficient and has more benefits that it does costs.

Standards of Argument: Research on the success of the treatment and facts on how the treatment really works will be the most effective will be the most persuasive. Providing this type of information will make my argument hard to disagree with. I will most likely have to make the research simple in order to persuade the patients but the physical therapists will be able to understand any obscure terms.

Visual Elements: My audience will most likely respond to images of the treatment being done/what it looks like and graphs and charts showing statistics along with it. This represents real life examples and facts.

Purpose: My audience is reading my argument to expand their understanding of electrical stimulation. For physical therapists especially to make them more well rounded in their career and it will expand their options when treating theirs patients. My argument is likely to do this by providing facts and personal experience.

Genre

1. I've decided to write an informative article on a professional website pertaining to health and medicine. 

Example 1

Example 2

Function: I chose this genre because I feel it's the best option that pertains to both physical therapists and their patients. It is designed to formally inform both of my audiences properly. 

Setting: As I stated before, I see it being posted on a medical website that has more of a professional, official tone. 

Use of Rhetoric: I will mostly be focusing on logos as my argument is based heavily on facts. I will also incorporate pathos when regarding costs of the treatment, etc.

Visual Elements: I won't be using too many visual elements to keep my article a little more professional, but if I do use images it will be of the actual treatment in use.

Style: The style of my article will be formal.

2. I could write an in-depth QRG (this would pertain more to the patients)

Example 1

Example 2

Function: This genre would provide a shorter but very detailed explanation with scannable topics covering all aspects of the treatment. This option would pertain more to the patient side of my audience because most of the information here wouldn't be new to the physical therapists.

Setting: I can see this being posted to a website that discusses health as well as other topics. For example a major magazine website that also has a health/wellness page. I would expect the website it's posted on to be more focused on health topics but not exclusive to them.

Use of Rhetoric: Similar to my other genre, I will mostly stick to logos, but here I will appeal a little more to pathos than before due to the audience.

Visual Elements: I will most likely use some type of visual evidence. Definitely more than I would in my previous genre. I would use an opening picture of the treatment being done/the setting it would be done in. Something that's a little less formal and more persuasive. 

Style: For this genre I will still shoot to be formal but it would not be as formal as my previous genre.

Responses/Actions

After reading my argument I would like my audience to realize the benefits of using electrical stimulation as a treatment in physical therapy. 

Positive reactions:

1. The patients that read my argument want to participate in the treatment

2. PTs that read this use it to treat their patients

3. Technology for e-stim becomes more developed because of people using it more frequently.

Negative reactions: 

1. Audience sees insurance issues regarding the treatment as a deciding factor

2. Physical therapists think that other treatments would be more effective and decide to disregard my argument.

3. Physical therapists think that because the treatment is sort of time sensitive they do not want to take the time do learn the certain conditions that come with the treatment.

Analyzing Purpose

In this post I will discuss the purpose of my public argument through questions from Writing Public Lives.

Finetooth. "Amargosa Desert" Nov 5 2009. CC. 

1. Freewrite on the goal of my argument
The goal of my argument is to convince physical therapists and their patients that the use of electrical stimulation in physical therapy is an effective treatment. I want the readers to see through my experience and factual evidence that this technology could be very useful/is already very useful.

2. Plausible vs Nonplausible Actions/Reactions
Plausible reactions from my readers could be that they agree with my argument and believe all the evidence and facts that I provide. Nonplausible reactions could include the readers having personal experience with the treatment and experience it being ineffective.

3. Effects of Plausible Action
If my readers do find my argument to be true then it could lead to an increase in physical therapists treating patients with electrical stimulation and patients being healed faster and easier. It could even lead to development of the technology of electrical stimulation because the demand goes up and there would be more research on it.

4. Possible Audiences
My audiences will most likely include physical therapists, doctors, and patients. More specifically this could be newly certified physical therapists, doctors doing research on new treatments, patients seeking out a new type of treatment if their current one isn't working as well as they would like, etc.

Analyzing Context

In this post I will answer questions from Reading Public Lives.

Hanoitaxi. "Three Kekachi Mountains" Jan 28 2010. Public Domain.

1.  What are the key perspectives or schools of thought on the debate that you are studying?

The key perspectives involve the effects of the treatment itself on the body and the social and cultural factors of the treatment. More specifically, this would be the side effects of the treatment, the costs of the treatment, the uses of it, etc.

2.  What are the major points of contention or major disagreements among these perspectives?

The major problems that have come into question include the cost, as some insurance companies do not cover the treatment. There have also been problems with physical therapists being hesitant to use it due to the treatment being sort of time sensitive in order to work most effectively. 

3.   What are the major points of agreement, or the possible common ground between these 

perspectives?

When used correctly, the treatment is very effective in treating injuries. Many studies have proven it's effectiveness. The common ground between the two perspectives is the time sensitivity aspect of the treatment.

4.  What are the ideological differences, if any, between the perspectives?

The differences between the ideology of the two perspective is that one is factual and the other is more based on the cultural aspect of things (It's effective but insurance doesn't cover it).

5.  What specific actions do their perspectives or texts ask their audience to take? 

They ask the audience to consider all of the other factors of the treatment other than it's effectiveness. 

6.  What perspectives are useful in supporting your own argument about the issue? Why did you choose these?

Since I have personal experience with electrical therapy, I think that will create a strong argument because I can share my personal story with the success and truth that I have found through research of this story. I also think factual information will support my argument. 

7.  What perspectives do you think will be the greatest threat to your argument? Why so?

I think facts and solid evidence will be the greatest threat because there's no disagreeing with them.

Reflection
I reviewed Alyssa's post and Kelly's post. All of our arguments were pretty similar as they all pertain to somewhat medical topics. Because of this, we all decided that basing our arguments on facts was the most effective route to take. This way it is difficult to argue against it. Also, my topic and Alyssa's topic both have other cultural factors that play a large role in our subjects. This made me realize that these topics need to be discussed in our projects.

Audience and Genre

In this post I will discussing the specific audiences for my Project 3. 

Dr. John Kelly. "Lake Placid Winter Olympics Crowd" Feb 1980.  Public Domain.

Audience

1. Physical therapists

Physical therapists will be interested in this topic to try and find new treatments they can utilize and help treat their patients more effectively and efficiently depending on their needs. By viewing my project they can see the benefits of using electrical stimulation and practice it to broaden their options when treating patients.

2. Patients in need of physical therapy

Patients in need of physical therapy will make use of this argument when seeing how they can be treated using electrical stimulation. They will see how it works in their body and the typical injuries it is used for to find out if this kind of treatment is something they will benefit from. 

Genres for Physical Therapy

1. I could write an argumentative article and post it to a popular healthcare site that features physical therapy.

Example 1

Example 2

2. I could write an informative essay based on facts and evidence.

Example 1 

Example 2

Genres for Patients

1. I could create an informative article and post it in a popular health magazine

Example 1 

Example 2

2. I could create a pamphlet containing information about the types of treatment and how it's used

Example 1 

Example 2

Extended Annotated Bibliography

In this post I will provide new sources for my argument for Project 3 in an annotated bibliography.

Vishnu Nair. "Alapuzha Beach During Sunset" Mar 2 2011. CC 3.0.

HERE is the link to my extended annotated bibliography.

Narrowing My Focus

In this post I will focus on a few questions from the previous blog post and discuss why they're important.

Tony Atkin. "A Very Narrow Road" Aug 3 2006. Creative Commons Attribution.

What factors made the treatment questionable?

I think it's pretty crucial to know the answer to this question in order to create a public debate. Appealing to the reasons it's been questioned is a large part of what I'm going to be arguing about in terms of why electrotherapy should be used.

How does electrotherapy treat patients?

Knowing exactly how the treatment works will make my argument much more valid and help me provide solid information that could defend my argument.

Questions About Controversy

Below I will continue to discuss the use of electrical stimulation in physical therapy.

GCiriani. "EMS Squat" Aug 7 2014. CC.

Questions About Who Is Involved

1. What type of patients need electrical stimulation? Do they have an opinion?

2. What kind of medical professionals oppose the treatment?

3. Who are the leading researchers on this topic?

Questions About What Is Up For Debate

1. What factors made the treatment questionable?

2. What are the positive/negative effects of the treatment?

3. What results made this topic up for debate?

Questions About When The Controversy Started

1. When was this treatment invented?

2. How long ago did we discover possible issues with it?

3. When did the controversy begin?

Questions About Where The Controversy Started

1. In what areas is the treatment used?

2. Where did experiments with the treatment take place?

3. Did the area in which the controversy started have any affect on the topic itself?

Questions About How The Controversy Started

1. How does electrotherapy treat patients?

2. What problems made this topic controversial?

3. Was there a specific event that caused this topic to become controversial?

Reflection on Project 2

Below I will reflect on my final draft of Project 2.

Steffan Ritt. "Canada's Fireworks" 07-31-2013. GNU Free Documentation.

What was specifically revised from one draft to another?

In my revised draft I really made sure to focus more on the author's strategies instead of the treatment the author was talking about. I switched words like "it" to "he" to show how the author's actions were affective more just that the strategy was effective.

How did you reconsider your thesis for organization?

I made my thesis more specific. I made sure that it was geared towards what the rest of the paper was going to be about and kind of squished my whole topic and direction in one sentence.

What led you to these changes? 

I think it was overall more effective and made everything easier to identify. I also changed it because I think my introduction was getting too wordy and it was kind of difficult to see the direction my paper was taking on.

How do these changes affect your credibility of an author?

I think they increase my credibility because I identified the issues with my previous draft and revised them to improve my overall project.

How will these changes better address your audience or venue?

These changes will help my audience understand my project a lot better and make them feel more comfortable reading it all the way through.

How did you reconsider the conventions of the particular genre in which you are writing?

I reconsidered the language I was using. During the revision process I found myself changing words to make the language more formal because I remembered that this genre requires more formal writing.

How will these changes assist your audience in understanding your purpose?

This change helps my audience realize the genre they will be writing in and what's expected of them in the future.

Did you have to reconsider the conventions of the particular genre in which you are writing?

I didn't have to reconsider them too much because I am already very familiar with the conventions of this genre.

How does the process of reflection help you reconsider your identity as a writer?

It really just helped me put my writing in check and improve my argument as a whole because I catch myself in mistakes if I was going to fast or couldn't find the mistakes before. Every time I revise I find new things that I could improve on so it helps me grow my identity as a writer.

Reflection
I looked at Alyssa's and Savannah's blog posts. I noticed that all three of us mentioned that we made the most revisions on our introduction and conclusion due to the blog posts. Alyssa mentioned that one thing she learned from this project was that it's important to be very sure of the topic you're writing on before starting the project. I really agreed with this because I had to shift the topic of my draft a little bit to focus more on the rhetorical strategies than the subject the author wrote about.

Project 2 Final Draft

Below is my final draft for Project 2

Official Navy Page. "San Diego" Apr 1 2011. Public Domain.

HERE is my final draft!

Punctuation, Part 2

In this post I will discuss the topics I learned from Rules for Writers and apply them to my current Project 2 draft.

ForestWander. "Autumn Red Fall Tree Lake" Sept 11 09. Creative Commons Attribution. 

The Comma

I've learned a lot about commas in my lifetime and I feel as though the most helpful tip of this section was to use a comma after an introductory clause or phrase. The provided an example and I tried to read the sentence without the comma they added and it resulted in the sentence having a completely different meaning. It explains that without the comma providing that necessary pause it will most likely result in the reader completely misunderstanding the sentence.

End Punctuation

This section discussed periods, question marks, and exclamation marks. Honestly I didn't learn as much from this section as the other ones that I've read because I'm already very familiar with this type of punctuation. In the period section I did learn to omit the period between academic degrees and to add it in in between a.m. or p.m. if it's lowercase. All the information from the question mark and exclamation mark section was full of information I was already aware of.

Other Punctuation

This section discussed a large variety of different punctuation. I mostly focused on the types that would benefit my Project 2 specifically. This includes the ellipsis mark and brackets. The book described that ellipsis marks are used to show that the writer omitted words from a quote. The most helpful tip I got from this section was that if more than a full sentence was taken from a quote, to use a period instead of an ellipsis. From the brackets section, I learned that brackets enclose words that the author inserted to replace a word from a quote. I also learned the meaning of "sic". It means that the quote was translated and shows up differently than the original quote.

From my Project 2 Draft

After reading my draft with these three topics in mind I didn't find many errors to correct but I did find sentences I had already applied the rules to or that I could possibly change in the future if it flows  in my work.

End Punctuation

I correctly applied the rule about omitting the periods between PhD in this sentence: "Gad Alon has a PhD and is a certified physical therapist".

Other Punctuation

I added an ellipsis in the following quote to eliminate unneeded words from the quote I chose: "At the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore...we strive to improve patient's' current capabilities by using ‘forced interventions,’". I skimmed all the quotes I used and I could add brackets or more ellipsis but it runs the risk of taking away from focusing on the author's words. Therefore I think I'll refrain from further use in this project.

Paragraph Analysis 2

In this post I will discuss the paragraph analysis I performed for my Project 2 draft.

Unknown. "Scientific Review" Aug 22 2005. Public Domain.

HERE is the copy of my draft.

By going through my paragraphs again, the biggest thing I noticed was that I should talk more about the strategy specifically rather than electrical therapy. I do this in most of my paragraphs already but I think I need to make it more clear that the strategy itself is what's being focused on. Other than that I think I include the major genres of the essay with proper evidence and analysis.

Revised Conclusion

In this post I will rewrite the conclusion of my Project 2 draft.

Mrs Rockefeller. "Conclusion Page" Mar 12 2008. Public Domain.

I feel as though my new conclusion is much stronger than before mostly because I never fully completed my conclusion in my draft. In my new conclusion, I chose to circle back and go over the content of my essay again. I think this was effective because it reiterates what was said and closes up my essay nicely.

Old Conclusion

Treatments in physical therapy are evolving at a fast pace. (I never fully finished it)

New Conclusion

Overall, the rhetorical strategies Alon uses in his argument create a strong argument for why electrical stimulation should be used in physical therapy. He strategically places them throughout his text in order to produce the most effective argument. The use of legitimate studies, personal experience, and his expertise as rhetorical strategies makes a persuasive argument defending electrotherapy. Thanks to these rhetorical strategies Gad Alon was able to successfully convince his readers that electrotherapy is a powerful tool in physical therapy.

Revised Introduction

In this post I will completely rewrite my introduction from my Project 2 draft.

Antonio Litterio. "Power of Words" May 26 2011. CC. 

Old Intro

When thinking of physical therapy treatments, the first thing that comes to mind is repeated, guided exercises and most likely some individual tasks as well. One treatment that’s a bit less common is called electrical stimulation. This treatment uses electric impulses to elicit muscle contraction to reduce pain, swelling, and increase range of motion in patients. Due to his expertise in the field, Gad Alon uses a number of rhetorical strategies to discuss the sucessful use of electrical stimulation in his article, Stimulating Controversy. Gad Alon has a PhD and is a certified physical therapist himself; he and is also is currently employed at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. He claims that electrical stimulation is an effective treatment in physical therapy when used properly and in the right context.

New Intro

Rhetorical strategies are a very crucial factor in the effectiveness of an argument. Without them it's almost certain that a text will have no persuasive effect on it's readers. Articles such as Stimulating Controversy by physical therapist and PhD Gad Alon make use of multiple rhetorical strategies in order to create an effective argument regarding electrical stimulation in physical therapy. Electrical stimulation uses electric impulses to elicit muscle contraction to reduce pain, swelling, and increase range of motion in patients. Making use of his expertise in the field, providing scenarios, and displaying studys on the treatment Alon creates a strong argument on why electrotherapy is successful.

I think the new version of this introduction is more effective because it's much more focused on the actual topic. Before, I discussed electrical therapy too much and neglected the topic of the actual use of rhetorical strategies. In the new intro, I made it very clear that the topic of my essay was to discuss how rhetorical strategies create an effective argument instead of the successful use of electrical therapy.

Reflection on Project 2 Draft

In this post I will reflect on Savannah's and Kyle's draft for Project 2.

ASIF_JALAL_RIZVI. "Autumn" Dec 23 2007. Free Documentation License.

Do you have an identifiable thesis? Does it point to the specific rhetorical strategies?

I do have an identifiable thesis that states that how the author uses rhetorical strategies in his text makes his argument effective but I realized don't mention the specific strategies. I plan on doing so in my revised intro.

How have you decided to organize your essay? Does each paragraph have a central point?

I've decided to organize my essay by focusing on one rhetorical strategy per body paragraph. Each paragraph does have a central point that's supported with evidence and analysis.

Did you identify and analyze the five elements of the rhetorical situation?

I identified the text, audience, and author. I realize I should make them more identifiable and also talk about the constraints and reasoning the text was made.

Did you explain how and why certain rhetorical strategies were employed? 

Yes, I did. For each rhetorical strategy I showed how it affected the audience. I might want to go back and include why the author did so more. I made sure to show how the strategy that was used was effective in the text.

Are you thoughtfully using evidence in each paragraph?

Yes, I made sure to use specific examples in each paragraph. I made sure to try and use multiple examples where applicable and show analysis for each.

Do you leave your reader wanting more?

Honestly, probably not. I always have a hard time with attention grabbers and using interesting phrases. I think my opinion might have something to do with the topic itself as well. I think I do answer the "so what" question though.

Punctuation, Part 1

Below I will discuss what I learned about punctuation from Rules for Writers.

Hermes from mars. "Français" Dec 16 2012.

Unnecessary Commas

The most useful advice I got from this section was to not use a comma between compound elements that aren't independent clauses. I've always struggled with deciding where a pause was needed and more often than not I place a comma in an incorrect place. This section helped me realize that these added commas can cause confusion. I learned that using a conjunction such as "but" or "and" is plenty and doesn't require a comma at all.

The Semicolon

I had a general understanding of how to use a semicolon but this lesson showed me new uses. I was already aware of how to use it between two independent clauses. One lesson that was more beneficial to me was to use a semicolon between items in a series containing internal punctuation. This is a really helpful tool to avoid overuse of commas and clearly separate different ideas.

The Apostrophe

The rule I was most unaware of in this section was to not use apostrophes to form the plural of numbers and letters. This makes sense after reading the rules about it but isn't as obvious when trying to formulate sentences that include them. The book also mentioned an exception when using lowercase letters and the capital letters A and I.

Reflection

While peer reviewing, I found that the sections about semicolons and unnecessary commas were the most common to fix.

I peer reviewed Savannah's draft. I was able to discuss semicolons and unnecessary commas here.
One of her sentences was, "She explains Winston’s view that there is not enough evidence, yet, to understand the consequences involved with the alteration of genes." I explained that the commas between "yet" were unnecessary and could create confusion in the readers.

I discussed semicolons in this sentence: "By including outside information about the genomic sequences, Parry is able to effectively exploit the dangers involved in genetic engineering due to the high probability of failure; genetic engineering may not account for every single genomic sequence, which could potentially cause more problems. Parry then compares an embryo to other types of genetic engineering, like the modification of seeds." I commented that the semicolon could be replaced with a period in this case because there is too much internal punctuation and the clauses involved are too lengthy.

I also peer reviewed Kyle's draft. I found parts of his draft to talk about apostrophes and unnecessary commas. The sentence where I talked about apostrophes was "His examples are,  "In 2003, for example, Elan Pharmaceuticals had to stop trials of an Alzheimer's vaccine that had cured the disease in ‘Alzheimer's mice,’ after the substance caused brain inflammation in human test subjects." I mentioned how changing the quotations to apostrophes around "Alzheimer's mice" was a wise choice in taking away confusion within the quote and avoiding too many quotation marks. 

In another sentence of his, he says, "The use of recent examples add to the credibility of his argument, whereas he uses examples of the counterargument that are more than half a century old." I commented on how the comma before "whereas" is unnecessary because a pause isn't needed there and the sentence flows well without it.

Draft of Rhetorical Analysis

In this post I will discuss my current draft for Project 2.

Camdiluv. "Colours of Happiness" Jan 1 2007. Creative Commons Attribution. 

I found that this draft was pretty painless to create with my outline. As i expected, my draft came out a little different than my outline. I've always had trouble with the conclusion of my papers which is why mine's not totally completed yet, I do plan on following the content from my outline though. When reviewing my draft, keep an eye out for repeated words and maybe try to suggest others I could  replace them with. I felt as though I was repeating myself a bit. 

Enjoy my draft HERE

Practicing Summary and Paraphrase

In this post I will paraphrase a quote from my text for Project 2.

Hasanber. "Llupa" May 27 2015. Creative Commons Attribution.

Original Source (Found here)

In fact, electrical stimulation can help patients improve their function. At the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, for example, we strive to improve patients' current capabilities by using "forced interventions," such as electrical stimulation. By using this modality, patients can perform movements and specific tasks they otherwise wouldn't be able to do. This treatment approach is called the forced intervention paradigm.

My Paraphrase

Gad Alon discusses his personal experience with successful use of electrical stimulation in physical therapy by explaining it's use at the School of Medicine at the University of Maryland. With this technique (called intervention paradigm), patients engage in e-stim and as a result regain movements they had lost or could not perform before they started the treatment. 

Summary

The author, Gad Alon, discusses how the use of electrical stimulation in physical therapy is a successful treatment when used in the right circumstances.

Project 2 Outline

In this post I will construct an outline for Project 2.

BaroBert. "Beach at Peaceful Bay" Mar 9 2004. GNU Free Documentation License.

Influences from Writing Public Lives
The ideas from this text made the assignment much more clear and structured to me. I really benefited from the idea found in the introduction that said the goals of rhetorical analysis are to analyze the persuasive strategies of the text itself rather than the ideas the text discusses. I also liked the description of the body paragraphs. At first I was a bit unsure on how to structure them because I'm analyzing the text itself more than the argument but when it said that I analyze a certain piece of the text rather than the argument within it was very helpful.

Introduction

• Background information
• Background on the author
• Short description of electrical stimulation
• Thesis statement
• Analytical claim with support

Body (Uses expertise on other subjects to describe argument)

• Focus
• Gad Alon uses his current knowledge on physical therapy to describe the successful uses of electrical stimulation.
• Textual Support
• "But to separate the fact from the fiction in the electro-geriatric debate, we must first examine the nature of the aging population."
• Explain how his prior knowledge supports argument
• "The best intervention to slow down and even reverse this decline is physical activity and routine exercise. Unfortunately, most people, especially those who are older, are unwilling and frequently unable to exercise effectively on their own."
• Explain how his knowledge of other treatments would be effective but outside factors lead to e-stim
• Conclusion
• The author's expertise makes his argument that e-stim is effective valid
• Shows knowledge on other subjects that makes e-stim a practical treatment

Body (Personal experience with e-stim)

• Focus
• Gad's personal experience with electrical stimulation is evidence of it's effectiveness
• Textual Support
• "At the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, for example, we strive to improve patients' current capabilities by using "forced interventions," such as electrical stimulation. By using this modality, patients can perform movements and specific tasks they otherwise wouldn't be able to do. This treatment approach is called the forced intervention paradigm."
• Describe how his personal experience using the treatment proves it's effective
• "A requirement of this paradigm is that patients repeat the forced performance many times each day so that they can favorably modify performance. Electrical stimulation, if used properly, can be an effective intervention in meeting these footholds to function."
• Connect this to first quote
• Conclusion
• Author showing personal experience with electrical stimulation supports idea that it works
•  Gives reader hard evidence
• Also gives author credibility

Body (Evidence)

• Focus
• Gad provides evidence about electrical stimulation that supports the use of it.
• Textual Support
• "In addition, evidence is mounting that electrical stimulation can augment metabolic processes and vascular responses in stimulated tissues. Likewise, the literature repeatedly demonstrates that electrically induced muscle contraction effectively strengthens skeletal muscles of the torso and limbs, helps improve joint motion and reduces limb edema."
• Uses evidence from a study to show specific way it is beneficial
•  "In addition, recent and growing bodies of clinical evidence show that electrical stimulation can minimize various impairments and even promote selected functional improvement in stroke survivors."
• Same as above
• Conclusion
• Providing evidence from a study gives readers outside sources that confirm his argument other than his own experiences/expertise

Body (Counterarguments)

• Focus
• Gad provides the current setbacks and misconceptions of electrical stimulation.
• Textual Support
• "The issue of insurance coverage is complex and beyond the scope of this writing. However, the recent ruling of the Health Care Financing Administration favors reimbursement for treating slow-to-heal wounds and incontinence."
• He provides the issue and contradicts it
• "Lack of confidence in electrotherapy among clinicians is another deterrent. Most therapists are unaware of the beneficial effects or the rationale of using electrical stimulation with patients who have impairments with joint mobility. Yet, available data, as limited as they are, clearly indicate the benefits and further imply that early intervention is likely to yield considerably better outcomes than delayed intervention."
• Again, describes problem and provides a solution and the fact that the only thing holding them back is their ignorance.
• Conculsion
• Providing multiple counterarguments and contradicting them makes the authors argument much stronger and more effective
• By providing solutions it gives the readers no choice but to agree with him because he provides solutions. 

Conclusion

• Restate his strategies in different wording
• Brief explanation on how they were effective after being combined in complete text. 
• Describe why  they are effective

Reflection

Morgan's outline, similar to mine, was created loosely and allows for room for development throughout constructing her argument by leaving unanswered questions and key ideas to draw on more as she goes. Savannah's outline was well put together and had a little more structure to it than mine and Morgan's. Through reading my peer's outlines, I realized that I my outline will be effective in creating some structure for my draft but I can tell that my draft will vary a bit from my original plans. 

Draft Thesis Statements

In this post I will construct potential thesis statements for my essay regarding "Stimulating Controversy"

Frank Schulenburg. "US Declaration of Independence Draft" Jan 31 2011. Public Domain.

Pertinent Information

Author
Gad Alon, PhD & PT. He earned his master's degree from the Medical College of Virginia and his PhD from the University of Maryland.

Purpose
The text he writes discusses the current issues associated with electrical stimulation in physical therapy.

Audience
Other physical therapists, patients considering the treatment, medical students

Ethos
Tone, word choice, unbiased information

Logos
Expert opinion, examples, clear transitions

Pathos
Repetition of key words

Thesis Statements

1. Due to his expertise in the field, Gad Alon composes a quality article of the promising possibilities for the proper use of electrical stimulation in physical therapy while also discussing the set backs that currently abide with the treatment.

2. In his compelling article on electrical stimulation in physical therapy, Gad Alon discusses how the treatment can be used in an effective and proper way.

My current thesis statements are pretty broad. This is because the article itself does not have one specific direction but instead talks about the downsides of electrical stimulation but ends on a positive note which makes the argument of my essay difficult to define.

Reflection
I reviewed Kelly's and Morgan's blog posts. Both of them constructed very nice thesis statements. From reading their posts I realized that these statements are a little different from the cookie-cutter ones I was used to writing in high school. I also realized that my particular article has a looser argument than that of my peers. Both of theirs takes on a concise direction while mine is less concrete. I think in my essay I should take what the author says and tweak it into more of an argument.

Analyzing My Audience

In this post I will answer the questions found in Student's Guide about analyzing the audience of my text.

Unknown. "Eaton’s employees in auditorium at a War Bond Rally, 1943 (Toronto, Canada)" 1943. Public Domain

Who am I writing for? What are the audience's beliefs and assumptions?

I am writing for students in the medical field and patients in physical therapy that are interested in learning more about the controversy on electrical stimulation in physical therapy. The audience believes in beneficial uses of their money, highly qualified therapists performing the treatment, and the well being of the patients being performed on.

What position might they take on this issue? How will I need to respond to this?

They will most likely see the benefits of using e-stim but also see circumstances in which other methods would outweigh it due to outside factors such as cost and qualifications. I will need to respond to this by statistically showing how effective e-stim is and that because of this those factors should be reconsidered.

What will they want to know?

They will want to know the reasons behind the setbacks and how we can overcome them to make the treatment more useful as a whole. 

How might they react to my argument?

They will most likely agree.  I will provide the evidence used in the text and reiterate the statements the author makes to show the reasons why they should agree.

Are there specific words, ideas, or modes of presentation that will help me relate to them in this way?

I can use the idea of the well being of the patient being the most important factor and that the outlying issues with the treatment should not play as big of a role as people have been making it.

Reflection

I analyzed Morgan's and Jayni's posts. Both of my peers had very specific audiences with a lot of knowledge behind the topics they're discussing. Morgan predicted her audience to react with sympathy and agree with her argument because her argument is about physical punishment in children. I found this interesting because I felt that every audience would feel sympathetic about this.
Jay's audience is specifically chemical engineering students. She found that her audience would agree with her argument if she used facts and science to prove her argument. After reviewing my peers posts I found that my audience is a little more broad and the information I will supply contains different types of values and beliefs that varies between my audiences.

Cluster of Stimulating Controversy

In this post I will create a cluster of the rhetorical strategies, rhetorical situation, and cultural ideologies included in my text

Screenshot taken Oct 6 2015

In my cluster, I've summarized the rhetorical strategies, rhetorical situation, and the culture's ideology  taken account for in my article. I did this by separating these three topics into separate branches and further explaining them from there.

You can find my cluster here.

Analyzing Rhetorical Strategies in Stimulating Controversy

In this post I will analyze the rhetorical strategies in my text of choice.

Unknown. "Analysis" Unknown. 

Appeals to Credibility or Character

Which items on the bulleted list of "Appeals to Credibility and Character (Ethos)" can you recognize in your text?

Word choice, tone, information on the author's expertise, and appeals to values or beliefs shared by the audience.

How and why would the author use these strategies?

The author uses word choice and tone to create the overall feel of the text. The information on the author's expertise is used to give the content credibility and the appeals to values/ beliefs shared by the audience is used to describe the issues with electrical stimulation in a way that the audience can relate to and create an opinion about.

How do these strategies affect the audience's perception of the author's credibility and character?

By providing that the author has a PhD and PT it tells the audience that he is authorized to give information on the topic and has a lot of prior knowledge of the treatment.

How does the use of these strategies impact the effectiveness of the text's overall message?

These strategies enhance the effectiveness of the message because it gives the content much more depth and meaning when there is other background to what the author is trying to portray.

Does the author seem to have any biases or assumptions that might impact their credibility?

The author seems to favor the idea of electrotherapy. He claims that in the right setting it is very effective but a lot of the problems lie in outside sources that do not have to do with the treatment itself.

Appeals to Emotion

Which items on the bulleted list of "Appeals to Emotion (Pathos)" can you recognize in the text?

Repetition of key words and tone of voice are the only ones I could recognize.

What emotional responses is the author attempting to create?

The author does not attempt to create much emotional response in the readers.

What is the actual result?

The author mostly just presents the facts in the controversy and lets the readers create their own emotional response due to their own personal opinions.

Are these emotions effective or ineffective for this particular audience?

I would say it's effective because it allows the readers to think for themselves instead of having the author sway the readers to think a certain way.

How do these emotional appeals affect the credibility of the author or the logic of the text?

It makes the text more credible because the author doesn't need to persuade the readers a certain way. The content alone helps the reader form an opinion which makes it very credible.

Appeals to Logic

Which items on the bulleted list of "Appeals to Logic or Rational Decision Making (Logos)" can you recognize in your text?

Historical records, interviews or expert opinions, and effective organization of sentences.

What response is the author attempting to create by employing these strategies?

The author is attempting to logically explain the current issues with the use of electrical stimulation. By explaining them logically, he's attempting to get the readers to think critically for themselves about the issues and for their own opinions.

What is the actual result?

The readers form their own opinion based on the content of the text and the problems discussed.

Are these strategies effective or ineffective for this particular audience rhetorical situation?

They are effective because explaining it logically allows for the readers to believe the content of the article and form their own personal belief on the subject.

Reflection

I reviewed Morgan's and Dylan's posts. Both of them were very different from my own. Morgan's was about the use of physical punishment in children for discipline which made her case very emotion-evoking. Dylan's author was Quentin Tarantino so his writing style didn't exactly need to follow any of the bullets from the rhetorical analysis in order for people to create responses. I think after reading their posts I can conclude that mine is effective and answers the questions thoroughly.

Analyzing Message in Stimulating Controversy

In this post I will analyze the message in my chosen article on electrical stimulation in physical therapy.

Alchimista. "Mail_blue. jpg." August 14 2008. Creative Commons  Attribution.

Bullet points most relevant to the goals of my texts author

Respond to a particular occasion or text - The author's goal is to respond to the outcomes of electrical stimulation. The occasion is the issues that come out of the use of electrical stimulation and the author is reacting to them in the text.

Reflect on a topic - The author is reflecting on the treatment of physical therapy by discussing the problems that have come up with it.


Bullet points that are not relevant to the goals of the author

Persuade an audience of something - The author's goal is not to persuade the audience. He simply states the current problems with the treatment and avoids persuasion by closing with a statement about how the current situation still has to be looked into and that there are no concrete answers yet.

Move the readers to feel a certain way - Similar to the bullet mentioned above, the writer isn't trying to evoke any emotion in the readers. He mostly states the issues with the treatment.

Nuances & Layers

The only layer I can see is the author being in favor of using electrical stimulation but also seeing the setbacks to the situation. Therefore he is not exactly sure how to display the information because both sides of the arguments are valid and it is difficult to display an opinion on the sublject.

Analyzing My Own Assumptions

In this post I will be analyzing my personal values in relation to my text of choice.

Unknown. "Outer Surface of the Human Brain" February 25 2011.  Public Domain

 1. What cultural or social values, beliefs, etc., do I share with the society or culture in which the text was written? 

Similar to the text, I believe that cost, health issues, and expertise in applying the treatment being used are important values. Due to the fact that I have personally experienced electrical stimulation in physical therapy, I can relate to a lot the concerns that come up throughout the controversy. I experienced difficulty in cost and effectiveness of the treatment as the article discusses. I also experienced lack of confidence in my therapists which made the treatment a bit nerve-wracking.

2. What cultural or social values, beliefs, etc., do I not share? Why not? 

In all honestly all of the beliefs discussed in the article were valid to me. I did not find an idea that I disagreed with.

3. If the text is written in a cultural distant or different from our own, what social values, beliefs, etc., connect to or reflect our own culture? What social values, beliefs, etc., can we not see in our own culture?

Social values discussed that relate to my current culture is the qualification of the physical therapist performing the treatment. Our culture values high quality medical care and ensures that all professionals in the medical field are highly qualified. Because physical therapist's confidence to perform the treatment is low, this is a main concern. There were no values in the article that did not relate to our culture.

4. If the text is written in our culture but in a different historical time, how have the social values, beliefs, etc., developed or changed over time?

Since the article was written in 2001, it is still considered pretty relevant in the medical field. Especially since I experienced the same dilemmas in 2014. From personal experience, I can confirm that the social values, beliefs, etc., have not changed since the article was written.

Reflection
I reviewed Alyssa's post and Nick's post. Reading my peers posts made me realize that I agreed with all of the ideas from my article. Alyssa discussed how her own culture couldn't apply to some of the text simply because she's a girl and her article had to do with the circumcision of males at birth. Nick discussed the overall society's assumptions on the topic which did not always agree with the topic. I realized that due to my personal experience with electrical stimulation it makes my assumptions easier to relate to the text and helps me understand the conflict overall.

Analyzing My Texts Cultural Setting

Below I will analyze the different types of cultural beliefs found in my text of choice.

Rdghalayini. "Unknown" April 5 2014. Creative Commons Attribution

When and where
The text was written April 2, 2001 to a website called Advance Healthcare Network for physical therapy and rehab medicine.

The author Gad Alon has a PhD and PT. He is titled the Associate Professor Emeritus at the University of Maryland. His research is focused on electrotherapy and neuromodulation.

1. What values, ideas, norms, beliefs, even laws of the culture play an important role in the text?
The text discusses the use of electrical stimulation in physical therapy. Many of the problems involved with the technique include cost and health of the person receiving the treatment. This indicates that the culture from which this article came from values effective use of their salary as well as their well being. People value saving money and being healthy.

2. Does the text address these cultural values, beliefs, etc., directly (by directly mentioning and responding to them) or indirectly (by presenting a scenario or narrative that addressing them)? 
The text directly addresses these issues. One of the main concerns with the technique is that insurance companies often don't cover the cost of the treatment. Even though the cost of the treatment does not affect the outcome of the treatment itself, the author addresses it as a major conflict because that is what the culture values.

3.What is the relationship of the text to the values, beliefs, etc.? Is it critical of these aspects of the culture? Is it supportive? Does it seek to modify these aspects of the culture in a certain way?
The values in the text are both directly and indirectly related. The health of the patient is directly related. This is because the use of electrotherapy directly effects the health of the patient. The cost of electrical stimulation is indirectly related. This value doesn't directly affect the effectiveness of the therapy but is a big factor when deciding to use it or not.