Julius's English Blog

      In my group we really did not have any disagreements. We had a good mix of everyone's sources, and we usually all agreed on what source we would use. We would talk about our sources for each group and then just choose the best one without arguing. We would just choose the one that stood out as the best.

      By completing the annotated bibliography I had to go deep into my sources to find out what the mean, and how they connect to my question. This helped me understand how to use my sources by writing the reflection. By putting a small bit of all my sources in one place really let see the big picture all my sources were giving.

      The most challenging part of the annotated bibliography was the reflection. Finding how the sources connected to my research question was hard. I had so many sources all with different information, and ways of portraying them. So when I had a pretty hard time doing that.

      One of the main issues with cosmetic surgery is that the outcome can either be negative or positive. The issue in this is it depends on the person and their reasoning, so when researching the effects it has on ones self-image and mental health it's hard to gauge. In one of our sources, " A systematic review of the factors predicting the interest in cosmetic plastic surgery," it uses previous research done by others to find out the true outcome of cosmetic surgery. By the end they came to the conclusion that it depends.

      With my question on plastic surgery most sources I found were against it, I found little to none defending it. Yet people still do plastic surgery so there must be a good reason. In looking for both sides I try to use different key words. We looked for sources. I learned a lot about cosmetic surgery.

      When searching with GALILEO I have started using more specific search prompts. I have also started using filters in my search to find what I really need. In doing so I have more more valuable articles, and sources that really help me with my research question. We looked for more sources. I learned how to navigate GALILEO.

      In the best when I researched a topic I would just put in the topic. I have learned now that I should make my search prompt more specific to my question. Like instead of searching up "cosmetic surgery negative affects," I would now search up "effects of cosmetic surgery on mental health." Doing this I put away bias, and I'm able to get answers to my question. Was not at school.

      For our research project we got cosmetic surgery. For our question we got "the impact of cosmetic surgery on self-image and mental health." This is a hard topic to answer since it's hard to  gauge someone's self-image. The two perspectives that I need to look at are the people who got surgery and felt great about their looks, and the people who got it and regret their decision, and it harmed their mental health. Worked on the research project. Was not at school.

      My freshman year I had to do a project on sending an email with a slide show attached to our senator. We had topics and bills to research on to try to create change. My project was on the rights and protection of people in the LGBTQ+. I had a hard time fully understanding what a bill was saying since they uses a lot of words not often found in non courtroom English, and the names of the same bills were hard to remember. Now that I have done that project I feel a lot more confident in my research abilities,  We worked on beginning our research project. I learned how to get good sources.

      If I had a spring break with no limitation, I would go to Europe. I would spend a few days going to different countries. I would like to start it off with Spain then move up to France, Germany, Denmark, and Poland. I would try all the food, and experience has much culture I could in each one. I would like to go with a large group of friends, like eight or ten, and move around in a large car. I would like to see the Eiffel Tower, the Little Mermaid in Denmark, and many more monuments. I would also like to experience their different music and dances for each country, to truly learn more about their cultures. We watch more of the movie. I learned about Chris's family life.

      Chris McCandless wanted freedom and independence so much that he took a path not taken by many. He went out on his own and in doing so he died. By not preparing properly, and not being able to contact anyone for help, he died in the bus by starvation. In my life I have tried many times to have fun without others, like playing games by myself, or going to parks. Yet I never had as much fun as when I did it with someone else. We watch more of the movie. I learned more about how the movie portrays Chris.

      With now seeing most of the movie I feel I have a greater understanding of Chris. Being able to hear his sister in the background talking about their family life helped me understand what made Chris leave. The movie showing what the fights between Chris parents in live action really shows what it could have been like. In the movie there is also a lot more dialogue with Chris, I was able to get a better picture of what he was like with this. We watch more of the movie. I learned more about what made Chris live.