Archive for the ‘BLOG 1’ Category

BLOG 1: America’s Rising Consumption of Bottled Water

1.This article is about how the number of water bottles that American’s drink per year is rising. It is also about the reasons why water bottle sales are so high, and why it has become the main beverage for people to drink vs. sugary or carbonated drinks. I chose this article because I tend to only drink water and it interested me to learn about how much bottled water is being sold and how it has a negative environmental impact.
2. The research about the rise of bottle water and the decline of soda comes from Beverage Marketing Corporation. Also, the research chart done about the rising bottled water consumption per year in America was done by the sustainable-water research institute the Pacific Institute. The data was collected by comparing the average water bottle consumption of americans over the years since 1970, and then using information to predict how the bottled water consumption will skyrocket come 2017.
3. A few questions I have regarding the article: It seems that the information for the average number of water bottles consumed by Americans per year is vague and I wonder how exactly they came up with that average. I also wonder why so many people purchase bottled water at a rising rate, especially with constant talk about global warming and the still constant struggle of the economy in this country. Although the craze for being healthy is rising, and adds regarding this are drawing buyers to the bottled water, the craze for saving money is also still substantial with our economy. One would think that getting water for free from the tap would be more appealing then spending money on a case of bottles

Categories: BLOG 1

BLOG 1: Puppies Go To Prison to Become Dogs That Save Lives
Puppies Go to Prison to Become Dogs That Save Lives #veterinary #onehealth— Michael Lairmore (@LairmoreDVMDean) August 2, 2015

August 31, 2015 1 comment

1. This article is about dogs (Labrador Retrievers) that are taken and trained at the Canine Performance Sciences Program at Auburn University. These dogs are trained primarily to build their strong sense of smell to keep people safe. This will train the dog to sniff out possible bombs, drugs, and other threats to people in a government agency or private firm. For half of that time though, these dogs will spend their time and live in a certain state prison where the inmates that have earned their right to work and interact with the dogs will have the chance and also to enhance socialization and detection skills for them. The article extensively explains dogs innate sense of powerful smelling abilities and how they use them.  I chose this article because I am a dog lover and it is so fascinating to me to read up on how dogs help humans all over the world in so many situations.

2. This article is from an article on The New York Times online, written by Ethan Hauser on July 27th, 2015. The research for these dogs was conducted starting  at the Canine Performance Sciences Program at Auburn University and then was studied in the state prisons. The research was conducted by Auburn in that they first tried to have the dogs live with local foster families, but what ended up happening is that they just became raised like pets, not as dogs to build their strong sense of smell and prepare them for their ultimate job. So, the program leaders decided to place the dogs at Bay Correctional Facility, in Florida in 2004 and the rate of “house-pet” dogs dropped dramatically as these dogs were in a more stringent environment. Auburn now partners with five local prisons in Georgia and Florida because of this and the dogs are able to be trained for what they are meant for.

3. One question I have about the article is why they chose Labradors instead of say, German Shepherds? I know they mentioned in the article that mostly labs are “a breed chosen for its sociability and physical resilience,” are good, but I always thought German Shepherds were the first types of dogs always chosen so it was interesting to me. Another question I had about the article was if any of the inmates were able to keep the dogs after, had they gotten out when the dog was still around, even though they wanted to keep the dog for government or private companies. I would like to think that if a dog and an inmate formed a special and close bond that they wouldn’t just have them taken away from them, or perhaps they could go visit them.

Categories: BLOG 1

Blog #1: Ivy Leagues vs. Big Bucks

August 31, 2015 Leave a comment
  1. The article I chose is a research study that was done to discover which universities graduates making the highest salaries attended in the past. I chose this article because as a graduating senior I feel that this is useful information and may help me, and others, to compete for a higher salary in the future if I understand the strength my university can offer me.
  2. The data collected published by the Washington Post was received from PayScale who collected salary data from nearly 1.5 million graduates from over 1,000 colleges nationwide.
  3. The article focuses a lot on how Ivy League graduates are not making nearly as much as we expected, but the article has very little information on salaries from public universities. Which 1,000 schools were chosen? Should more colleges have been used in this study to get a more accurate analysis of employees salaries from schools around the US?


BLOG 1: All lives matter

August 31, 2015 1 comment

<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet” lang=”en”><p lang=”en” dir=”ltr”>Dammit people, if all lives truly mattered we wouldn’t have to say Black Lives Matter! <a href=””>#BlackLivesMatter</a></p>— opal tometi (@opalayo) <a href=”″>August 31, 2015</a></blockquote> //

I’m not sure how to properly embed the tweet- the link is above but it reads “Dammit people, if all lives truly mattered we wouldn’t have to say Black Lives Matter!

My article is about people believing that people who promote the Black Lives Matter campaign are a hate group. Individuals argue that with the rioting and protest promoting this cause this group of people promote hate and violence. I chose this topic because being from the St. Louis/Ferguson area i witnessed this topic hits really close to home and I believe this movement started in my neighborhood so i find it very interesting researching others opinions

The article is from Hassleback partnered with Fox news. The tweet i mentioned is from a girl named Opia and I referenced it because i agree with it and it received 87 retweets and 113 favorites.

Would you consider Black Lives Matter a hate group? if so, what actions do you deem appropriate to change the image?

Categories: BLOG 1

Blog 1: NFL Football Power Index

ESPN’s NFL Football Power Index (FPI) launched today. Here’s a look into how it was developed:

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) August 31, 2015

  1. The article I chose discusses the metrics system used by sports analysts to decide on which teams will have more future success using statistics and relationships from prior years. I chose this article because I was interested in what statistics play heavily in their suggestive decision.
  2. The data used within the article written by Sharon Katz, was produced by three members of the analytics team — Brian Burke, Zach Bradshaw, and Alok Pattani. The article produced a questionnaire conducted by Katz and answers were produced from the three members.
  3. One further question I have following the article is related to the actual formula. Although the team declares pinpointing a distinct formula is difficult to due based on the incredible amount of variables used, is there any data system that a monitor can produce more efficiently?


Categories: BLOG 1

Blog 1: Decline in California Population

August 31, 2015 Leave a comment


  1. This article highlights the shift in California populations following the recession and housing bubble. I chose the article because the loss of residents reflects a net loss of $26 billion in state revenue, which affects the entire state’s economy.
  2. The information located in the tweet is new tax return data collected by the IRS over the last decade.
  3. The article claims economic hard times most likely contributed to the population shift, but how would they have factored that into research? If migration data lags two to three years, how can we be certain that this is an accurate portrayal of all residents?
Categories: BLOG 1

Blog 1: Number of Veterans Hired in Federal Positions Increases

August 31, 2015 1 comment

This articles describes the rising numbers of veterans that are being hired for government jobs. Although, most government agencies have difficulties keeping the veterans, because they quit. The Department of Defense is the only federal department that has been able to maintain a high percentage of veterans staying in their positions.

These statistics were published by the United States Office of Personnel Management. The information is published in a booklet called Employment of Veterans in the Federal Branch 2014 Fiscal Year. The booklet does not describe what type of study was done, but it is given to us by a government website and we can only hope that it is an accurate display of information.

I am interested in how the data was collected. I liked how the data was organized and showed the data of the previous fiscal year next to it so the reader could see the connection and increase in the number of veterans that have federal jobs. I think it would’ve been nice to understand why veterans were quitting their jobs but no explanation was given.