Has it not exactly been a month since my last post. Be that as it may, during a conversation with my father, I managed to encounter the topic for this article. Have you ever wonder how you could be better at public speaking? Well, rhetoric may be key to solving your communication problems. Even though it started out over 2000 years ago, it is still as effective as it was back then. In the following, I will go deeper into the aforesaid and also explain some of the most relevant rhetorical devices.

According to the Cambridge English Dictionary, rhetoric is "speech or writing intended to influence people". Thus, it could be used for both good and evil purposes. Albeit, I believe rhetoric goes beyond the aforementioned definition. Trying to convince an audience is no easy task. When using the proper techniques however, the process becomes considerably simpler. For instance, a lawyer making use of rhetorical devices to convince the jury of his client's innocence. Speaking of which. Let us define rhetorical devices before we proceed. "A rhetorical device is a technique an author or speaker uses so as to persuade the reader or listener to consider a topic from a different perspective, and even to take action". The video that I will attach at the end of this post mentions seven devices. I nonetheless will focus only on six of them.

1. Rhetorical Question:

A question that is not answered by the writer or speaker, owing to the answer being obvious.

It often asked to make a point.

- McGregor? Why would you want to vote for a person that does not keep his promises?

2. Allusion:

A brief and indirect reference to a person, place, or idea of historical, cultural, etc. significance.

- He was good at business, but his Achilles' Heel was gambling, thus he lost all his money.

3. Repetition:

Repeats a word or phrase several times in order to make a point or emphasize something.

- "The government of the people, by the people and for the people shall not perish from earth" Abraham Lincoln.

Additionally, we have the "Communication Triangle". These devices are better utilized in spoken form. Ethos (credibility), Logos (logical reasoning), Pathos (the audience's emotions) play a crucial role in swaying the audience to your point of view, argument. Shall we continue?

4. Ethos:

The person delivering the message has to be credible (trusted, knowledgeable, etc.)

- He is a forensics and ballistics expert for the federal government. If anyone is qualified to determine the murder weapon, it is him.

5. Logos:

The message must be logical and well-presented. (Makes sense, has facts and evidence for support)

- Ladies and gentleman from the jury. We have not only the fingerprints, the lack of an alibi, a clear motive and an expressed desire to commit the robbery. We also have a video of the suspect breaking in. This case could not be more open and shut.

6. Pathos:

The message touches the emotions (Tugs at the heartstrings with a story or an image, creates anger or fear.)

- You should consider another route. I heard that that street is far more dangerous at night than during the daytime.

In summary, we could argue that there are countless more rhetorical devices that should have been mentioned. Notwithstanding, the ones above are more than enough to have background knowledge on this matter. The reason why these techniques Greek philosophers introduced thousands of years ago remain applicable, is due to them dealing with aspects that are never going to go out of fashion. You will always need qualifications to make yourself look more credible when speaking to a crowd. You will always need evidence, facts and logic to substantiate your points. Lastly, you will certainly always need to appeal to people's emotions to sound more convincing as well. Being able to master the last three devices is a challenge worth pursuing. Before I leave nonetheless, I would like to add a quote from Star Wars that effectively uses "Anadiplosis", a device I left out of this post. "Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering" Master Yoda.

Sources.
- Course: Grand Canyon Diploma English 3 YouTube channel.
- Cambridge University Press English dictionary.
- www.mrmediatraining.com/2011/03/15/nine.rhetorical-devices-for-your-next-speech/

How to Study Way More Effectively | The Feynman Technique

Had I been in search of the most suitable topic for my next post, until I found it. I recently encountered the "The Feynman Technique". One of the most popular and accepted study techniques to date. It might as well be the solution for students struggling in college. In the following article, I will expand on why I believe the aforesaid method to be of great significance not only in a classroom setting, but in countless others even outside of the academic realm.

 

Even though no method is infallible, this one is remarkably effective. The Feynman technique was of course developed a Richard Feynman, a well know physicist and author of world-wide recognition. Among his countless accomplishments are his earning of a Nobel Prize in 1965 and his research in 1986. Which actually helped understand the cause of the space shuttle Challenger disaster. Back to the main point however. You can use this model to learn new concepts in a short amount of time. Not to mention that you return later on and fill in the gaps in your knowledge. Moreover, it also allows you to grapple with tedious subject matters in a more effectual manner. For instance, when trying to explain the essentials of particle physics, Feynman relied not only on verbal and spoken communication, but on diagrams and drawings that made his concepts clearer.

 

So as to better understand this technique, let us go through the steps one by one:

1. Identify the subject: Write as much as you can about the subject you want to master. Every time you run into a new concept, add it to your notes.

2. Teach it to a child: If you manage to teach a concept to a child, it shows a good level of undestanding of it.

As you did with step one, start with a blank note. Write everything you know about the topic, but in plain and simple terms. Proceed to explain it to the child in a straight-forward way. 

3. Identify your knowledge gaps: Highlight your knowledge gaps, make sure nothing is missing. You can call upon your source material and answer question you could not have answered before. Organize your notes.

4. Organize + simplify + tell a story: Group together your notes and begin to create an story with concise explanations. Practice reading your story out loud. Pretend you are addressing a class full of students.  Try using analogies and simple sentences to aid you explanation.

 

In summary, being able to use different strategies when trying to learn a new subject will boost your progress. Just remember that the one described above is only one of the many existing methods. Never stop enquiring and looking into more updated versions of previous techniques and new ones as well. Study less, study smart. In fact when Bill Gates bought the rights for Feynman's lectures he said: "I do think that making science cool to people when they are young and therefore getting more people to go into it in an in-depth way, I think that is very important right now".

Sources:
- https://medium.com/taking-note/learning-from-the-feynman-technique-5373014ad230
- Freedom in Thought YouTube Channel.

The great filter | Robin Hanson | TEDxLimassol

Why have we never been able to make contact with life-forms on other planets?. The aforesaid is a question that countless scientists have asked themselves for decades. The most fitting answer to that conundrum is without a doubt the "The Great Filter Hypothesis". In the following post, will I address my thoughts on this hypothesis. Not to mention elucidate on the relevant points.

 

From a wider spectrum perspective, it has indeed not been that long since the first two men landed on the moon.  July 20th, 1969 to be precise. Since then, we have only been able to send rovers, and orbiters to outer space. Be that as it may, our next "big challenge" is for NASA to prepare a human exploration program to Mars. What is more, every new discovery we make brings us one step closer to accomplishing that endeavor. Back to the main argument nonetheless. Experts suggest that the reason why we have failed thus far to contact extraterrestrial civilizations may be due to them having perished. It does seem hard to believe notwithstanding, that in a universe of 300 billion stars, there are no other life-forms alive other than us.

 

Professor Peter Ward, at the University of Washington concurs with aforementioned statement. He says that since there are hundreds of billions of galaxies similar to ours. Thus, billions of planets like Earths as well. There must be life somewhere else. The Great Filter Hypothesis claims that something gives rise to the destruction of civilizations, before they manage to develop intergalactic communication and travel. Professor Ward also states that a couple of reasons why societies cease to exist could be "climate change" and "overpopulation". According to him when a species overpopulates, it begins to poison its home. Irrespective of what the reason is however, by no means is Professor Ward discouraging other scientists from keeping up with their research.

 

Professor Carl Brusse, from the Australian National university, says as follows: "We have only searched a tiny corner of the galaxy, and it is enough for us to start questioning whether our initial assumptions were correct and maybe downgrade the possibility of life". He might as well be right. Being open to the likelihood of human kind being able to finally connect with the unknown is all we civilians can do for now. For the time being, we can expand our scientific knowledge slightly more, and hope for the best.  

Sources:

- https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo/apollo11.html
- http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-07-21/great-filter-theory-may-explain-why-well-never-contact-aliens/8731806
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aspMV6ERqpo

Looks aren't everything. Believe me, I'm a model. | Cameron Russell

This is in fact my very first post of the year. Had I been having a hard time deciding what to write about next. Then it struck me harder than lightning. Something that has been a part of me ever since I can remember. Of course I am referring to superficiality. More so regarding physical appearance. In the following, I will address this issue from a personal standpoint. Apart from expanding on it from I could gather.

 

Even though I have indeed overcome the most negative aspects of being superficial, I still find it hard not to judge a person based on the way they look. These beliefs may be grounded in my ancestor's mindset. Be that as it may, I knew there was more to an individual than only the exterior. Hence, I started befriending people from different backgrounds and stopped disregarding them due to their physical traits. Only then did I understood where the real value of a human being lay. Take intellect, principles, experience, among other major assets you can completely overlook in someone. Only because you were more concerned about how they looked. Statistics do not lie. Out of 2500 people surveyed in the United States by Allure Magazine back in 2016, 64% claimed their appearance had helped them get assistance from a stranger. Whereas 62% of them said they had received better service at a store.

 

People are becoming more aware of the impact of physical appearance in society. Nonetheless, several changes still have to be made in the mentality of the public eye so as to bring about considerable improvements in the future. Prejudice and being judgmental of others can have a serious effect in their personality. For instance, to this day I remember wanting to change my appearance as a child on account of my classmates teasing me. This was owing to a physical flaw a fixed down the road. Still and all, had I been less self-conscious about the way I looked, I would not have had to fix anything in the first place. What I was trying to get at, was that no one (especially employers and people around us) can put limitations on somebody else solely on the grounds of physical characteristics. Instead, they should factor in what the person has to offer (e.g. skill-set to perform the task at hand).

 

In summary, It does seem unfair to receive an advantage over someone else only because you look more appealing to the eyes of the rest. The more we acknowledge this however, the better judgment we can have when dealing with similar situations. It might be true that you can do things to change the way you look. Such as exercise, surgery among others. Notwithstanding, learning to accept yourself as you are right now should be a priority in your life. Unless it is affecting your health that is. As usual, I will leave you with a video that will give you more insight into this matter.

Sources:
- TED YouTube Channel
- https://www.allure.com/story/national-judgement-survey-statistics