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Roshi7 Fleeting Peer Edit

Page history last edited by PBworks 15 years, 5 months ago

James Fleeting

 

 
The article was able to address a technical subject and make it understandable to a broader audience. The subject matter is a bit of a downer, not that it was top priority in my grading. This is not "Warm and Fuzzy 101." Maybe, to play devil's advocate, the obliteration of the planet was meant to be? For a cosmic eventuallity, what if that is the path we are meant to follow? That is as much a downer as the opening of your draft, to be sure. If as you say, much of the time has passed for a proactive solution to our predicament, what (if any) actions would be needed that would impact the audience. What were you trying to tell us, that there is no hope? Even a glimmer? Who were you writing for, other than all humanity? History is written by those left behind, so our true history is wishful thinking, for now.
 
The writing flows well, and paragraphs were of a good length. The quotations need citation. Maybe some further reading? Your cover page gave me some insight, and did help as a companion to your article. The length of the paper was correct, which seemed to be something that you place as a priority. You did mention it in some of your criticisms. I usually prefer substance over a rigid standard of length and the need to balance the two. As a journalism major, I understand the requirement to provide a certain quantity of copy. So I agree, for the most part, with the length issue.
 
 
23/25
 
 
 
 
To respond:
About length: I agree substance is more important. The only reason I made a big issue of it is I missed a family gathering, a gathering of friends, and a few other important things that week so I could get my paper to the proper length. If I'd known 2500 words meant 1000 was ok I could have enjoyed my weekend, and I was VERY aggrivated that my sacrifice was for nothing.
 
I don't agree with the idea that anything is 'meant' to be. Things are as they are, and we can only deal with the reality of our situation if we can stop wondering 'why.'
 
I wrote on this topic once:
 

Musings on the purpose of existence

A life without purpose. An existence without meaning. This is the conundrum that presents itself to any being that spends too much time wandering the plane of thought. All sentient beings wonder, at one point in their lives or another, why they exist. To what purpose they, as an individual, as a civilization, and as a species exist. Many accept the ready-made answer of a God, be he a benevolent Father figure or an omnipotent being to be appeased. To those though who are dissatisfied with another's answer and wish to seek their own, the nagging question of "Why?" persists. At this point though, two paths of thought present themselves, or at least two stand out from the crowd of potential ideas. The first is that there is no answer, that we exist in a Universe without purpose or direction, and that once the energies that animate all existence around us have burned out there will be nothing left. The cosmic accident that is existence will have ended. The second idea offers a little more comfort, to those that know how to seek it. Why? can be answered with the question, Why not? Existence, life, and being are the answers to their own question. Life exists simply because it can, and in the execution of our lives from birth to death we fulfill the only purpose we ever had; to live. For many this is the most terrifying idea of all; That there is no destination to life, other than death. We run our course, and then we're done and it is another's turn at existence. In this idea though, humanity can find the only true freedom we'll ever know. If we, the intellectuals of our race, can disconnect ourselves from the nagging questions of How, Why, and Who, (as the ignorant masses seem to do so easily) and simply get on with the exercise of living, we can at least die knowing we didn't live pursuing futility.
 
besides that, I said in my paper that what I want people to do is to start prioritizing the research neccsary for interstellar travel, and extrastellar colonization. It is an issue more important to mankind than ANYTHING else we are contemplating.
 
Thanks for the comments!
 

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