Sunday, October 28, 2012
Audio Story Proposal
For our audio story, I will be working with Lilly. Due to our subject matter, we will be interviewing each other as we both have similar experiences related to our topic. Our audio story will focus on our personal interactions with cancer. Each of us have a family member who is currently or has had to battle with some type of cancer. Therefore, we will interview each other not only about their stories, but also our reactions to it and how it has affected our lives. Although there are two different types of cancer being represented in our story, they both deal with a person vs. nature conflict. Even though this may cause a lot of inner conflict with the victim, it also works its way into society through organizations searching for a cure. However, at the root of it all, it is a natural, uncontrollable medical issue that causes conflict in someone's life. As for recording this story, we plan to interview in the privacy of our room, due to the fact that this can be a very personal topic. Other sounds may include music of our choice as well as the stereotypical sounds of a hospital that we plan to recreate on campus. For example, we plan to recreate the beeping of a heart monitor with the beep of our passports unlocking a door.
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Storycorps Podcast
I chose to listen to a Storycorps podcast entitled "I Should Have Died at Age 19." In this podcast, a special ed teacher named Ken Rensink is talking to his friend about a near-fatal car crash he was in when he was only 19 years old. He was partially paralyzed and he goes on to talk about how this experience has affected his teaching. He tells a story about how he didn't turn in one of his students who had been drinking before school one day because he knew that if he did, it may have been the breaking point at which the student stopped attending school. Later, he encounters the student, who now has a car, a good job and has finished school. The student says he never told Mr. Rensink "thank you" and Mr. Rensink responds with the sentiment that the fact that this student ended up being successful was thanks enough.
The conflict present in the story that Mr. Rensink told was mostly person vs. himself because he had to make the decision whether or not to turn in this student who had been drinking. There is also a person vs. object because of the fact that he was paralyzed in a car crash. It could also be argued that a person vs. society conflict is present because it is socially unacceptable for a student to come to school after drinking and this student beat the odds eventually and became successful.
The conflict present in the story that Mr. Rensink told was mostly person vs. himself because he had to make the decision whether or not to turn in this student who had been drinking. There is also a person vs. object because of the fact that he was paralyzed in a car crash. It could also be argued that a person vs. society conflict is present because it is socially unacceptable for a student to come to school after drinking and this student beat the odds eventually and became successful.
Vox Pop Proposal
For my Vox Pop interview, my question is "When you were little, what did you want to be when you grew up?"
I chose this question because I am interested to hear what everyone will say. I think there will be a wide variety of answers because of the many different interests and personalities of each individual. It will be interesting to see what people were interested in as children compared to what their goals are today. Obviously, we are all communication majors at High Point University so we have career plans relating to that field. It will be intriguing to see how our goals have changed or stayed the same throughout our lives.
I chose this question because I am interested to hear what everyone will say. I think there will be a wide variety of answers because of the many different interests and personalities of each individual. It will be interesting to see what people were interested in as children compared to what their goals are today. Obviously, we are all communication majors at High Point University so we have career plans relating to that field. It will be intriguing to see how our goals have changed or stayed the same throughout our lives.
Sunday, October 21, 2012
"This American Life" Response
The episode of "This American Life" that I chose to listen to was episode 436: The Psychopath Test, which originally aired on May 27, 2011. The overall theme of this episode was mental health. Each of the acts of this episode connects back to the idea of mental health and how it relates to the use of the "Psychopath Test," also known as the PCL-R (Psychopathy Check List Revised).
This episode has three "acts" in addition to the prologue. The prologue introduces the listener to the Psychopath Test and tells the listener that the staff of "This American Life" decided to take the test for fun. Act One features NPR Science Correspondent Alix Spiegel. Spiegel tells the story of Robert Dixon, a convict who is held in a maximum security prison for a crime he committed when he was much younger. He was found guilty of acting as an accomplice to murder and also had a history of criminal activity. Dixon appears to be a changed man and desires to get out of prison and turn his life around, but because of his score on the PCL-R, he is unlikely to ever get parole. This serves as one example of how the PCL-R is used in the justice system. Spiegel then switches gears and talks about the creation of the PCL-R. Bob Hare is the creator of the test and Spiegel outlines how the idea came about and Hare's fears of how the PCL-R might be misused in the criminal justice system. In Act Two, which is an excerpt from Jon Ronson's book The Psychopath Test, Ronson studies whether or not successful corporate leaders can be psychopaths. He does this by visiting the CEO of Sunbeam, Al Dunlap. He gives Dunlap a quick version of the test and finds the results to be a bit disturbing. In Act Three, the psychologist who administered the PCL-R to the staff of "This American Life" reveals the results of the test for everyone.
The segment of this episode that I found to be the most intriguing was Act Two, when Ronson tells the story of how he interviewed Dunlap and the results of his findings about corporate leaders being psychopaths. The story was incredibly engaging, especially for listeners who are interested in psychology and personality studies. The central conflict was mostly Ronson vs. Dunlap. Ronson was very nervous when proposing to Dunlap the idea that he might possibly be a psychopath. He was nervous to ask Dunlap about the personality traits that the PCL-R outlines because he was afraid that he might upset or offend Dunlap. The characters in this segment were interesting because Ronson really lets the listener inside his head. Listeners get a feel for all the different emotions that Ronson was experiencing during this very nervewracking interview. Hearing about the emotions and reactions helps the listener relate to Ronson because it portrays him as a normal human being. Dunlap is also an interesting character because the background information that is given about how he constantly fired tons of people makes him seem brutal and emotionless. This causes the listener to want to find out whether or not Dunlap is, in fact, a psychopath. We find out that Dunlap tells Ronson "funny" stories about how he has fired people with clever one-liners and such. When Ronson asks Dunlap about the character traits outlined in the PCL-R, we find that Dunlap turned most of the psychopathic traits around into things that he considered to be positive leadership traits. Dunlap's general outlook on life, based on the way he interacted with Ronson, is just so different from the average person's outlook that it is intriguing. Of course, this outlook is what makes him successful, and what could make him a psychopath. To keep the listeners engaged, this story is told in a conversational tone with inflection and emotion attached to it. Music is also used to break it up so the listener does not get bored. Overall, this podcast was very interesting and engaging.
This episode has three "acts" in addition to the prologue. The prologue introduces the listener to the Psychopath Test and tells the listener that the staff of "This American Life" decided to take the test for fun. Act One features NPR Science Correspondent Alix Spiegel. Spiegel tells the story of Robert Dixon, a convict who is held in a maximum security prison for a crime he committed when he was much younger. He was found guilty of acting as an accomplice to murder and also had a history of criminal activity. Dixon appears to be a changed man and desires to get out of prison and turn his life around, but because of his score on the PCL-R, he is unlikely to ever get parole. This serves as one example of how the PCL-R is used in the justice system. Spiegel then switches gears and talks about the creation of the PCL-R. Bob Hare is the creator of the test and Spiegel outlines how the idea came about and Hare's fears of how the PCL-R might be misused in the criminal justice system. In Act Two, which is an excerpt from Jon Ronson's book The Psychopath Test, Ronson studies whether or not successful corporate leaders can be psychopaths. He does this by visiting the CEO of Sunbeam, Al Dunlap. He gives Dunlap a quick version of the test and finds the results to be a bit disturbing. In Act Three, the psychologist who administered the PCL-R to the staff of "This American Life" reveals the results of the test for everyone.
The segment of this episode that I found to be the most intriguing was Act Two, when Ronson tells the story of how he interviewed Dunlap and the results of his findings about corporate leaders being psychopaths. The story was incredibly engaging, especially for listeners who are interested in psychology and personality studies. The central conflict was mostly Ronson vs. Dunlap. Ronson was very nervous when proposing to Dunlap the idea that he might possibly be a psychopath. He was nervous to ask Dunlap about the personality traits that the PCL-R outlines because he was afraid that he might upset or offend Dunlap. The characters in this segment were interesting because Ronson really lets the listener inside his head. Listeners get a feel for all the different emotions that Ronson was experiencing during this very nervewracking interview. Hearing about the emotions and reactions helps the listener relate to Ronson because it portrays him as a normal human being. Dunlap is also an interesting character because the background information that is given about how he constantly fired tons of people makes him seem brutal and emotionless. This causes the listener to want to find out whether or not Dunlap is, in fact, a psychopath. We find out that Dunlap tells Ronson "funny" stories about how he has fired people with clever one-liners and such. When Ronson asks Dunlap about the character traits outlined in the PCL-R, we find that Dunlap turned most of the psychopathic traits around into things that he considered to be positive leadership traits. Dunlap's general outlook on life, based on the way he interacted with Ronson, is just so different from the average person's outlook that it is intriguing. Of course, this outlook is what makes him successful, and what could make him a psychopath. To keep the listeners engaged, this story is told in a conversational tone with inflection and emotion attached to it. Music is also used to break it up so the listener does not get bored. Overall, this podcast was very interesting and engaging.
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Podcast Review
The podcast I chose is entitled "Interview with Big Bang Theory's Mayim Bialik." This podcast episode is part of The Learning Series, which is produced by Engineering.com, Inc. The host of The Learning Series is Katrina Devine, but the interviewer in this episode is Todd Sierer. He is interviewing Dr. Mayim Bialik, one of the stars of the hit TV show, "The Big Bang Theory."
This podcast was recorded at the USA Science & Engineering Festival in Washington, D.C. Mayim Bialik, a successful actress who also has a Ph.D. in neuroscience, was invited to speak at the festival. In this interview, Sierer asks Dr. Bialik various questions about how she became interested in neuroscience after she had already started an acting career and if she has any advice for young people who aspire to become involved in science. Bialik offers her input on how to get started in the field of neuroscience and having the confidence to pursue dreams. She emphasizes the fact that hard work, dedication, and passion are the keys to success.
I would say that this podcast fits best into the technology/science genre because the interview focuses on Dr. Bialik's neuroscience career more than it focuses on her acting career. It highlights her achievements in the field and presents her acting talent as just another job she has taken on that makes her success in the science world even more impressive. According to other episode descriptions, this podcast seems typical of the genre. Many of the other descriptions say things about other scientists who have made additional achievements outside the world of science.
This podcast was somewhat engaging. I believe someone who is especially interested in becoming a neuroscientist would enjoy this podcast. The interview was professional and the sound quality of the podcast was good. The only technical error that I observed was the fact that about halfway through the podcast, the audio didn't match up with the video. The words came before Bialik's mouth moved to speak them.
This podcast was recorded at the USA Science & Engineering Festival in Washington, D.C. Mayim Bialik, a successful actress who also has a Ph.D. in neuroscience, was invited to speak at the festival. In this interview, Sierer asks Dr. Bialik various questions about how she became interested in neuroscience after she had already started an acting career and if she has any advice for young people who aspire to become involved in science. Bialik offers her input on how to get started in the field of neuroscience and having the confidence to pursue dreams. She emphasizes the fact that hard work, dedication, and passion are the keys to success.
I would say that this podcast fits best into the technology/science genre because the interview focuses on Dr. Bialik's neuroscience career more than it focuses on her acting career. It highlights her achievements in the field and presents her acting talent as just another job she has taken on that makes her success in the science world even more impressive. According to other episode descriptions, this podcast seems typical of the genre. Many of the other descriptions say things about other scientists who have made additional achievements outside the world of science.
This podcast was somewhat engaging. I believe someone who is especially interested in becoming a neuroscientist would enjoy this podcast. The interview was professional and the sound quality of the podcast was good. The only technical error that I observed was the fact that about halfway through the podcast, the audio didn't match up with the video. The words came before Bialik's mouth moved to speak them.
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
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