Scholars against Internet Piracy

The article that I found from the Texas A&M library database is written by Fabienne Oguer over the topic of internet piracy. The article is scholarly for a couple of reasons. The first is a perk of using the A&M database, if you search an article and then click on show full text there is a box to the right that tells you if it is a scholarly source or some other type of source. The second reason you can tell is because it is peer reviewed and in the "Review of European Studies" journal. I also did some research on the author and he is a reputable source.

The article compares embracing the HADOPI Act rather than to continue to support the theft of online materials through the digital medium of a file sharing website. The author analyzes the credibility of using enacting such a thing and offers a number of justifications in instances when it would be applicable in employing this act and some when it is not. Basically the conclusion he came to was that if the actual person committing the piracy is "sufficiently guilt averse" then is would be germane to apply this act. This article is successful in its rhetorical approach because the author presents sufficient evidence for both arguments and in the end he leaves the reader with the conclusion that under the certain set of circumstances the act is not applicable, but otherwise it is.

Technology thats out of this world

As I type this there is an asteroid that is hurtling in Earth's direction. It is the closest a cosmic rock has come to Earth since 1976 and it is bigger than an air craft carrier. There is no reason to fret though because, even though it will be in closer proximity than the moon, this rock will pass right by Earth. Scientists are taking this opportunity to research the characteristics of this rock in all new ways. The fact that we have the technological capabilities to be this creative and study things outside of Earth is just incredible. This opportunity is not limited to only scientists either, but anyone with a telescope that has an aperture wider than 6 inches. Scientists have already been examining this rock using radio waves but tuesday, when its at its closest distance, they will get the best data for their records.

Science has come such a long way in the past ten years, let alone the past 50. Ever since the first lunar landing in '69 people have never ceased to amaze the world with the advent of new technology. Much of this is due to the creativity that people express in making technology. Then with that technology that was so revolutionary, say a computer, people once again use technology and creativity to make another thing even more impressive, a space station. Its quite interesting to see how one days technological marvel can be tomorrow tool of invention. I hope this article and blog has inspired you as much as it has inspired me.

Out with the Old

I was once told by one of my grandpa's wealthy old friends that the best way to make a fortune is to take an  ordinary, simple, everyday thing and reformat it and make it better. For example the guy who makes those whirlwind vacuums took a relatively simple idea and remade it to make it better and is now rolling in the green. This is not a new or unknown concept and the popularization of the internet has made this idea even more prevalent in today's society.

I think I really noticed this of late when I was looking for some new music and saw all of the remakes, mash ups, and covers that are out there. People do no hesitate to constantly push the boundaries of musical innovation in the most bizarre ways possible and many times its a hit. One of the artists who is great at this is named Jayme Dee and she does a lot of covers to popular songs and makes them acoustic. Many times I actually end up liking her version better than the original. This is also a good example of how technology can promote creativity because she has gained massive popularity through the medium of YouTube. She has her own channel and all of the covers that she does and people flock to her page to listen and download her music. She doesn't do this for the money because all of her downloads are free and she encourages people to download her music. This is because she is truly just in it for the music and  for her fans, like I mentioned in an earlier blog. But I digress, that is neither here nor there because this blog is not about her it is about how technology has drastically aided in the expression of creativity in this day and age (also a great album by the Killers).  

Juicy

Advertisements come in all shapes and sizes but they all come with the same purpose, to get their message out to the public in the most effective way possible. Many are meant to sell items, such as this one, but there are also many that are meant to spread beliefs or to try and get people to not do something, such as anti smoking ads. All of these can be further dissected from what they present at face value into smaller parts to further understand their main purpose and audience. If we analyze this using the Toulmin method then we can break it up into three parts, the claim, data, and warrant. 

Juicy Fruit Advertisement 

The claim of this advertisement is stating that the viewer of this commercial should buy Juicy Fruit Gum. That is really pretty standard for any advertisement because that is the main goal of the companies, to sell their product.

The data in this advertisement is more on the comical side saying that even sharks will turn down eating people because this gum is so juicy they would rather chew it. Great White Sharks have this stigma that they are man-eaters so if they are willing to turn down that for a piece of gum then it must be good.

The warrant is that everyone wants juicy gum. They are assuming that people aren't looking to gum for whiter teeth or for fresher breath but something that tastes good and is enjoyable to chew. 

This land is my land

The concept of Intellectual Property is a bit abstract. How can someone actually own something that doesn't exist in real time and space. I mean you can't really hold an idea in your hands and you can't see a thought, so how can someone own them. Well its been done. According to the United States Patent and Trademark Office, intellectual property is, "It is imagination made real. It is the ownership of dream, an idea, an improvement, an emotion that we can touch, see, hear, and feel. It is an asset just like your home, your car, or your bank account. Just like other kinds of property, intellectual property needs to be protected from unauthorized use."


This idea makes since for those types of jobs that involve innovation and constantly trying to come up with new things, such as an inventor or author. I mean what if someone had stolen J.K. Rowling's idea, they would now be the richest person in England. I think the part that troubles me is how someone proves that it was their idea originally, or is it just based on who patents the idea first? It is just a scary thought that it would be that easy to loose an idea, or I suppose i should say have an idea stolen from you. It almost discourages me from even considering a career choice that would have that possibility. 

ePiracy

While reading up on piracy on the internet, I stumbled across two different blogs. One of these, by the author Sherry Soule,  talks about her personal difficulty that arises when people illegally download her book over the internet rather than buying a copy of her own. She appeals to the rhetoric principal of pathos because she tells the audience how they are essentially taking food out of he children's mouths when they illegally download her book because she gets no money from this. She also tells them that when they do this they are also squelching her dreams of writing because if she doesn't get any money coming in she can't continue to do the thing she loves the most, write. She also appeals to ethos by reminding the audience that stealing in any form, including illegal downloads, is wrong. She then empathizes with the audience saying she is having financial trouble too and she can't even afford her own reading habits, which is why she set her book price cheaper than others.

The second blog was by Karen Dionne. It similarly discusses many of the same arguments that Sherry Soule's blog did, about how piracy on the internet is illegal and there is no way to justify otherwise. She uses logos when she presents many different facts about illegal downloads which in turn produces its own sense of pathos because the reader realizes how many self published and indie authors are getting cheated out of what is rightfully theirs. This blog does differ from the other one though in the sense that it is told in a way that is merely presenting information to the reader. The first blog is a first hand account of an actual author and how she is getting cheated out of her paycheck and how it is physically effecting her. I believe that the first blog is more effective in stopping someone from illegally downloading because everyone can clearly see the immediate consequences of their illegal downloads and she makes the people doing so feel guilty that they are taking away from what she has worked so hard to obtain. I believe that both blogs are successful in conveying the same message but the first one is more powerful in its delivery.

We're not in Somalia anymore...

As I stated in my last blog, the rapid growth of technology, mainly the internet, brought with it more ways for people to cheat the system. I talked about how people often steal things like wi-fi but thats not the only thing that gets stolen. One of the biggest problems of law breaking has been due to person to person file sharing.

 Basically its a way to not buy music, movies, etc and instead just share the media by making multiple copies of it. As stated in "Born Digital" the first of these to make a name for itself was the Napster. It focused on sharing MP3s among college students in order to find and share music. Since then, this concept has just exploded and struck a crippling blow to many people in the music industry virtually over night.

Being a college student I have to say I am aware of these sights, but i usually only use iTunes to get all of my music. This isn't so much that I have an incorruptible set of morals but more that I live in a dorm that is monitored and if I use those websights its only a matter of time before i get caught. Also I don't want to get any malware or viruses from those websights so i figure better safe than sorry. Although I don't actively use these resources I can't say that I see some thing wrong with them. Yes, I know it is illegal and I can see where people are loosing money but really the point of music is to be enjoyed. Artists shouldn't be in it for the money, they should be in it for the music so if they really care about getting their music to their fans they should like those programs. Also there really doesn't seem to be a way to stop it that I can see so it really just needs to be embraced.