Friday! Fridays are great. I had some time this morning, so I took my online quiz for stats class. Then I tidied up just a bit in case I didn't have time before Mom arrived.
As promised, we did our peer reviews in English class. I looked over an essay about why cosmetic businesses should stop testing their products on animals. The argument was that "it's cruel", but the paper's author sort of left it at that, without explaining much about what was cruel. Six pages in, she mentioned animals being restrained, and implied that restraint was considered animal cruelty. Hmm.
I think I was the best person in class who could have reviewed that paper, given that I'm studying psychology - especially animal behavior - and am a certified veterinary assistant. Animals are restrained in veterinary clinics so they can be given shots to improve their health. There are certain safe ways to restrain them. In fact, certain restraint techniques actually calm animals down. That's why we do them, after all. And as for researchers experimenting on animals, every time they want to study animals, they have to get approval from some sort of board or ethics committee that I can't remember the name of. If they don't get approval, it means the experiment was considered cruel, and they don't do it at all.
So, I suggested she taper her argument from "all animal testing is cruel" to something like, "It's important that animal testing is monitored". And... maybe explain what's so bad about cosmetic products, since I'm not familiar with cosmetics and to me, that just means the products may have caused animals to have curlier, silkier, or smoother fur. I wanted details and such, because what she was saying was actually interesting- she just needed to find a better way to present it. She also mentioned veganism in her paper, and vegans not wanting to use products that were tested on animals. She talked briefly about how you're more likely to get food poisoning if you eat meat than if you don't eat meat. Pretty broad area there. I told her that I don't like meat, but that I do like milk, cheese, and ice cream, so her argument about veganism wasn't very relevant to me.
She didn't have a lot to say about my essay, so I guess that's both good and bad. Though, it always amuses me how many of my peers always write notes that my grammar is either confusing or incorrect. Everything seems clear to me, and when I check my phrasing, I've adhered to all the grammar rules I know!
Shortly after I came back to the apartment, Mom arrived. We picked up groceries and then packed up many of my things, like knick-knacks, notebooks, and some clothes (especially dresses, since I only have one more Sunday up here). After that, we went out to eat at Angie's. I had a tasty grilled cheese with four different cheeses on it, and Mom and I split a giant cinnamon scone.
As promised, we did our peer reviews in English class. I looked over an essay about why cosmetic businesses should stop testing their products on animals. The argument was that "it's cruel", but the paper's author sort of left it at that, without explaining much about what was cruel. Six pages in, she mentioned animals being restrained, and implied that restraint was considered animal cruelty. Hmm.
I think I was the best person in class who could have reviewed that paper, given that I'm studying psychology - especially animal behavior - and am a certified veterinary assistant. Animals are restrained in veterinary clinics so they can be given shots to improve their health. There are certain safe ways to restrain them. In fact, certain restraint techniques actually calm animals down. That's why we do them, after all. And as for researchers experimenting on animals, every time they want to study animals, they have to get approval from some sort of board or ethics committee that I can't remember the name of. If they don't get approval, it means the experiment was considered cruel, and they don't do it at all.
So, I suggested she taper her argument from "all animal testing is cruel" to something like, "It's important that animal testing is monitored". And... maybe explain what's so bad about cosmetic products, since I'm not familiar with cosmetics and to me, that just means the products may have caused animals to have curlier, silkier, or smoother fur. I wanted details and such, because what she was saying was actually interesting- she just needed to find a better way to present it. She also mentioned veganism in her paper, and vegans not wanting to use products that were tested on animals. She talked briefly about how you're more likely to get food poisoning if you eat meat than if you don't eat meat. Pretty broad area there. I told her that I don't like meat, but that I do like milk, cheese, and ice cream, so her argument about veganism wasn't very relevant to me.
She didn't have a lot to say about my essay, so I guess that's both good and bad. Though, it always amuses me how many of my peers always write notes that my grammar is either confusing or incorrect. Everything seems clear to me, and when I check my phrasing, I've adhered to all the grammar rules I know!
Shortly after I came back to the apartment, Mom arrived. We picked up groceries and then packed up many of my things, like knick-knacks, notebooks, and some clothes (especially dresses, since I only have one more Sunday up here). After that, we went out to eat at Angie's. I had a tasty grilled cheese with four different cheeses on it, and Mom and I split a giant cinnamon scone.
After that, we made the long drive home. It's always nice when we don't break down on the way! At home, I finished one of those Pinterest assignments for interior design class, got some writing done, and completed an online English quiz. And enjoyed the company of my family too, of course!
