Assignment 7

Secret Life of Pronouns + Article

The idea that pronouns reflect who we are and how we think is an very interesting proposition. Given that pronouns position yourself wit respect to the world around you, it's definitely plausible  but I never considered that sort of analysis especially accurate. Minoring in psychology, I was familiar with the fact that writing and communicating traumatic experiences had a wide range of health benefits, I didn't however, know that the study originated with James Pennebaker. In Pennebaker's analysis of writing, three important findings emerged:

• the importance of positive emotion
• the use of positive language increases improvement in physical and emotional health
• the importance of constructing a story
• an increase in cognitive language over time demonstrates growth and understanding, which contributes to an increase in health
• the importance of changing perspectives

I find this book extremely interesting, both as a computer scientist and a psychologist. There is a lot of potential for the research discussed in the book and I feel that there is definitely something to take away from it.

Video + Observations

Creating our video was interesting for one reason in particular: nobody seemed to notice our camera. We used the lid cam, so it wasn't particularly obvious, but even the cashier didn't seem to notice its presence  This, to me, indicates the massive amount of information hiding in the real world that could be revealed with even a little bit of observational awareness. In creating my ethnography, I will focus on the use of language, how people orient themselves with respect to other people and their surroundings, the use of formalities, and any unusual protocols accepted by the group as a whole. Also interesting would be the level of acceptance that the group in question has with regard to other groups and individuals.