User:BillyChatterton/GE100 General Education

Always Wanted To Schedule

 * Topic: I have always wanted to play the harmonica


 * Research Component: The history of the harmonica, possibly the history of a song or two


 * week 1 - Learn chords, basics to harmonica, find a way to gage the difficulty of a song so I can chose one to learn


 * week 2 - Start learning the notes etc for chosen song, find free resources to teach me how to play, etc


 * week 3 - Start research on the history of the harmonica, practice


 * week 4 - Be sure all notes and breathing etc is known at this point so I can start improving


 * week 5 - Continue research and practice


 * week 6 - Assess progress and do any last minute adjustments


 * week 7 - Continue research and practice


 * week 8 - Continue research and practice

Midterm Assignment 1: Taste & Aesthetics
Alexander Calder’s Eagle

Alexander Calder’s Eagle (1971) was somewhat of a second choice for me because everyone else was picking Mark di Suvero’s Bunyon’s Chess. I wanted to have something unique and I’m glad I chose Calder’s sculpture. My first impression of the sculpture was coming up the hill from the west; this side gives a very structural view of the sculpture with the bolts, rivets, and some of the support architecture bold and somewhat distracting from the piece. As we walked around the park we ended up on the hill behind it. From a distance and alternate angle, Calder’s Eagle takes on a much cleaner look. From the east side, slightly above, and fifty to one hundred yards away it appears “clean.” This side of the sculpture lacks many of the eye sores and with the water as a backdrop it is much more appealing to my taste. The first things that struck me researching Calder’s life was that he is a third-generation American sculptor, and that he studied engineering before studying art. Knowing those facts gave me an appreciation for his family heritage and knowledge of sculpting. His previous education in engineering also yields an understanding of his use of steel and the rough architectural properties of the sculpture. This education explains why the sculpture is build like many of the buildings of that era.

Many aspects of Calder’s jewelry work are echoed today with hand crafted work you can find in many tourist locations including Pike’s Market. His sculptures seem reminiscent of some recent work, specifically one in California at the Roseville Auto Mall that one of my mentors worked. Based on what I could find regarding sculptures of the late sixties and early seventies, Calder’s work seems very innovative for his time. His work probably gave inspiration for serial art, and possibly some of the large pop art that came shortly after.

Inspecting more of Calder’s work yields mixed personal taste. I enjoy pictures of the “clean” sides of his sculptures while, the same sculpture captured from the opposite side gives a mechanical and awkward feel of the same sculpture. Much of Calder’s mobile art is growing on me as well as his wire artwork. Calder’s drawings and two-dimensional art, with the exception of “Across the Orange Moons” (1967) and “Crosshatch” (unknown), seem mostly static, and uninteresting to me.

I don’t think my mind has been changed completely, but I enjoy sides of his sculptures and have an appreciation for his work. I see Calder’s work as being qualified artistically and his choice of media as natural based on his engineering background. Calder’s work is now more interesting, knowing more about the man behind the art, and having a broader knowledge of his other creations.

Midterm Assignment 2: Manipulation
Logical Fallacies:

1) A fallacy committed on purpose

Non Sequitur: Because Chris Murphy is against wire tapping, it’s assumed he is bad for security, because Nancy Johnson opposes Chris’ view she is good with security.

Oversimplification: Taking the view that the entire issue of wiretapping revolves around intercepted terrorist calls to other countries.

Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc: Because a phone call is placed to a terrorist, a terrorist act is imminent.

Proof by Example: There was only one example of a phone call that may be tapped.

False Dilemma: Only giving one of two options regarding possible solutions to the wire tap.

Argument from Ignorance: Either candidate could say the other one has the “wrong” stance on an imaginary scenario depicted in this commercial.

Slippery Slope: The chain of logic is followed all the way from a phone call being made, to if the call is not tapped a terrorist act will happen.

Link to YouTube clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAwYe570PAc

2) A fallacy accidentally committed

One of my friends and I were sitting around talking about cars and Hyundai’s came up, as they are a cheap option for a car. My friend proceeded to tell me how I didn’t want one because they are cheap and not a quality car. After some probing I found their father told them 6-8 years ago when they purchased their last car that the cars were no good, and they had no personal experience with them.

Fallacies used:

Non Sequitur: Just because the car does not cost a lot of money doesn’t mean it’s not made well.

Oversimplification: see above

Dubious Authority: My friend knew nothing about Hyundai’s.

Glittering Generality: cheap and “quality car” you could say were used without definition.

Self-Assessment
Overall the class was interesting and useful. There wasn’t a lot of “new” information for me as I’ve taken a college study class before. However it was useful in finding out what the Art Institute specifically has to offer, mostly dealing with the library resources. Steven did well mixing up the class and the field trips created a nice way to break up the standard lectures most classes tend to lean towards. The final project was cool to get some time to work on something I’d wanted to try for a while even though the results didn’t work out the way I had hoped. It also reminded me that I need to work on self motivation and scheduling if I’m in a class where there is little feedback needed for weeks to keep myself on track with the project. The discussion on “critical thinking” might have been the most interesting as far as not being able to really measure it or know what’s going on in someone’s head, but knowing everyone needs to do it. Over all I did enjoy the experience, much of the information was a good refresher as it’s been a few years since I have attended school. Thank you Steven for your time and instruction!