Rough Draft Due 09-27-10
Final Draft Due 09-29-10
Expository essays are all about the “How.” In class, and in our conferences, you have had a chance to discuss something that interests you, as well as take some time to examine these things closely. But now I want you to describe the method behind some of the things you love. Choose one of the following essay prompts and write a well-developed, cohesive essay about something that interests you.
Essays must be:
- Double spaced
- Typed in 12-pt Times New Roman font
- At least 3 full pages long.
- and Follow MLA guidelines
1) From cooking shows with Julia Childs to Dirty Jobs with Mike Rowe, the best explanations of how something gets done have personality, in addition to the information. Believe it or not there is something you are an expert on! Tell me about something you like to do. Describe in detail the process you go through to do this activity. If it has numbers/weights/values be sure to include them. If it requires special tools, make sure you let me know what they are, and why they are important for this job. Does it require help? Does it require special materials? Or a special location? What are the specifics? This may require that you think about the process in an entirely new way (you may even need to do a little research). Make this explanation personal, but stay focused on the topic. Remember I don’t know as much about this topic as you do. You might also include why you like to do this activity or why you do this activity at all (Does it make you money? Is it a means to an end?). Let me know the details, but concentrate on the procedure. Explain it to me. I want to learn something.
2) Almost everyone has a dream for his/her own life. Sometimes these goals are dreamlike and vague (like being rich), but sometimes the goals are very specific and concrete (like visiting Notre Dame Cathedral). This prompt is for those of you who have a very specific goal in their life. Tell me about your goal and how you are going to reach it. If you want to have a job like someone, what do you have to do to become like this person? If you want to go somewhere on a trip, what do you have to do to get there? If it’s a personal goal, what do you have to change to reach it? What do you have to learn? What about this attracts you to this goal? It doesn’t have to be a job, but it cannot be simply graduating college (although college can be a milestone on your road to this goal). It can be anything from a trip you want to take to a future career. It can be an exercise routine that you need to maintain to get into the military or just a skill you want to acquire. Plan it out and tell me about the process you would need to take to get there.
3) The zombie apocalypse has begun and you are one of the few remaining uninfected. For simplicity’s sake, assume you are at CSUF when the uprising begins. Explain your plan for survival. Where will you go? How will you obtain water, food, transportation, and weapons? Will you stay on the move or fortify into a protected bunker and try to hold out?
Keep the following facts in mind about this particular zombie uprising:
1. The apocalypse is driven by a poorly understood virus. The virus is highly infectious and can be contracted from any carrier. This means that the zombie’s bite or scratch is infectious! If you are bitten, you will most likely become a zombie in 24-72 hours. This makes your defense extremely important.
2. You live in Southern California. When the uprising begins, you are somewhere on the campus of CSUF, but you do not have to stay on the campus.
3. You have only the skills and training you currently have. I.e., don’t magically turn yourself into a Special Forces operative or an expert pathologist.
4. The zombies created by the infection are extremely aggressive and constantly hungry. They are “fast” zombies, not slow, shambling zombies, and so they will sprint to attack you on sight. Though they are driven primarily to eat human flesh (which allows them to regenerate minor damage), they will subsist on other forms of food if available.
5. The zombies do not attack each other, but have the ability to distinguish between zombies and the uninfected by smell. Disguises, therefore, do not work. They do not have any special sensory abilities beyond this one.
6. There seems to be only one variety of zombie: fast, aggressive, and stupid. They cannot use advanced or specialized tools other than occasional club-like objects and cannot perform any complex motor skills (sewing, needlework, gymnastics, swimming, tobogganing, etc).
7. Zombies have no super-powers. They are simply humans with massive amounts of adrenaline in their systems. Because of this, they run only at normal sprinting speed and have strength only slightly above human normal (due to the adrenaline in their systems). Additionally, they are virtually immune to pain, which makes them slightly more injury-tolerant than uninfected humans. However, in general, what would kill an uninfected human will kill a zombie.
8. Approximately 95% of the population has already been infected. This means that complex systems, such as power grids, the Internet, emergency services (fire, police, etc.) and most other aspects of civilization have already collapsed. You cannot count on any organization or amenity of civilized modern life.
Keep the above in mind when analyzing your approach to the problem. Be specific and be sure to give solid reasons for your actions.
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