research intro/thesis draft

     As we all know, America is in the middle of an extreme epidemic. Obesity is a major problem in our country but what are we doing to help? Not as much as we should be doing, and that is for sure. Improvements on MyPlate have been made and campaigns are helping to raise awareness but what does everyone say it takes to be healthy? Diet and exercise. Health professionals are making an effort to help society gain knowledge about diet and nutrition but our country is completely in the dark about the exercise portion of health. With little no efforts being made to educate society, even some of the most educated gym-goers are unaware of the differences between static and dynamic stretching. Many are also unaware of the effects of both. Gym-goers are most often practicing static stretching prior to exercise thinking that they are doing themselves a favor. Little do they know, static stretching is not doing your muscles any favors! Static stretching consist of stretching the muscles while the body is at rest. Dynamic stretching consists of stretching the muscles with the use of force and momentum while actively improving range of motion. Some believe that static stretching is the best way to prepare the muscles for activity and avoid next day soreness. This is where efforts need to be made to educate society on the effects of static and dynamic stretching.

Moodle Assignment 6.1

The topic of my research paper is the effects of static stretching before exercise, however, I will be touching on some points referring to dynamic stretching and stretching after exercise. Based on my research thus far, there is no benefit of static stretching prior to exercise. In order to help get my point across, I will be utilizing different perspectives of the topic. For example, my interview with Professor Cukr will provide information from different perspectives on its own. She is a college professor in the field of exercise science but also has experience in various clinical practices. This is important to my research because she has the knowledge from her degree and also from her experience. I would also like to interview a physical therapist on the matter and am thinking about incorporating athletes and their coaches/trainers into my research. The combination of education and hands on, first person experiences will only strengthen my thesis.

Understanding Comics 5-9

In chapter 5 McCloud explains the idea of synaesthetics. He explains that the main goal is to unite the 5 senses and portray a certain feeling. The examples given on pages 118-120 best describe the idea of synaesthetics. For instance, the sight of short, sharp, jagged lines may cause the reader to get a sense of anxiety. This technique is used to help the readers gain a better understanding and become more engaged in the text.
In chapter 6 we learn about the importance of pictures and words. Pictures alone were becoming more representational and specific while words were being separated and becoming more abstract and elaborate. Pictures and words were slowly becoming enemies instead of sidekicks until Rodolphe Toepffer who brought the "family" back together.

In chapter 7 McCloud eplains that our species main goal is to reproduce and survive but that does not mean that our every thought at every second is focused on those two things. Art and other visual literature is incorporated into our lives for "greater survival." Page 164-165 gives a good example of this idea. The prehistoric man strives to reproduce then changes to survival when he is being chased by a predator. When he escapes the predator he sticks his tongue out and mocks him which is artful and in no way related to human instincts.




This picture is explaining the fact that survival is simply that without art. There is no reason to survive without visual literature or art in some form. 

The six steps of creativity may aid in the understanding of an artists brain. First comes an idea or purpose which simply means that the artist now has the content of his art in mind. The second step is form (how the artist will contain the content). The third step is idiom. Every piece of art belong to a genre or is a genre all on its own. The fourth step is structure, in other terms, how to compose the content. In the fifth step, craft, the artist is applying what he knows to get the job done. The final step, surface is referring to the "superficial exposure" of the work. In other terms, what the audience will first notice.

Color was timidly introduced into the world of comics by commerce and technology. Color only adds to the idea of synaesthetics, making the reader feel a certain way. Just as shapes and styles add to the emotion of a story, color does as well. There is a good example of how color affects the readers on page 187. The three men reading comics at a bus stop and the one reading the colored comic is more intrigued and immersed into the world of the comic.



every artist has their own opinion.    

Color gives the art a more 3D effect and come off to the reader as more realistic which draws them in toward the world of the comic, however, comics will never be completely replaced with color.

Comics are powerful because they are able to defy the inability that humans have to make others feel the same as they do. This is well explain on pages 194-195. To put it simply, comics have the power to make you understand. Comics have an incredible amount of potential because of everything that McCloud has previously talked about. Iconography, closure, style, simplicity, and the combination of words and pictures are what make comics powerful enough to achieve understanding. Since the beginning of comics, readers have been able to be more and more immersed in the stories because of the constantly increasing simplicity in the cartoons as seen on page 204. In terms of animation, through expressionism and synaesthetics the seed of the invisible is planted. This is where closure comes into play.
http://www.powerofcomics.com/