The Whitehead Preserve in Little Compton, Rhode Island, was a beautiful, well maintained trail that wonderfully meandered through a forested wetland. The most difficult part of hiking the trail was finding it, as the Dundery Brook Trail is located behind a tennis court in Veteran’s Field Park. Walking up to the path, the boardwalk began right at the tree line, and offered a smooth transition from the cement in the park. The boardwalk was impressively built and maintained, with solid wood and a lip around the edges to prevent people with wheelchairs or strollers from falling off the side. In areas where the boardwalk traveled over water, this wooden lip became a chest-high wire fence, with a wood railing to support the hiker. Along the trail were numerous benches, where one could sit back and relax amongst the birdsong and frogs. A great surprise was a branch in the path that went over a pond, ending in a small, gazebo-like landing where one could sit for a while.
Blanche’s Path, which began where Dundery Brook Trail ended, is a grass path circling Bumblebee Pond. Because of the recent rain, and it being on a wetland, it was muddy in some areas, with hiking boots greatly recommended. Here there were many paired-off ducks swimming amongst the reeds, and if I stepped too close to the pond’s edge, little fish would scatter and disturb the surface. The trees around the pond had begun to bud but were very early in the process. Most of the other plant life was still dormant, but I imagine that that field would bloom beautifully with wildflowers. I was unfortunately not able to walk Hope’s path, as the ground was far too muddy, as it had rained the day before. The path is well known for the flowers that grow along it, so I would like to visit again when I can see that. The mud, however, allowed me to see many animal tracks, such as raccoon, and fur that was most likely from a coyote. Overall, even though I did not see much wildlife, the evidence for its presence and the high quality of the walk itself is enough for me to want to go back. The well-maintained boardwalk makes travel through such an environment possible for all, and the well-covered environment is aesthetically pleasing. For such a short hike, it offers plenty to see in terms of flora, fauna, and environmental variety, with the bonus of being walkable by anyone and everyone.
0 Comments
Please click on this link to be directed to the first draft.
https://avamastrostefano.weebly.com/blog/nature-conservancy-first-draft This particular case is relevant to the course because it specifically grapples with the problem of communication, and why being able to communicate is such an important ability when working in the sciences. The whole problem presented in the article is that there are repeated clashes by the organizers of the March for Science and what their message is with the march. By conflicting with their own previous statements, specifically on what the march stands for, the organizers received heavy backlash by proponents and critics alike, which resulted in more controversy than the organizers were intending. The goal of the march was to show the government, and general public, that people care about science, and that science is necessary for society to function, but by mixing in the priorities of other protests, such as diversity and women within science, it makes a supposedly non-political protest political.
The main course term that comes to mind in this case is that of a discourse community. In this scenario, the March For Science Twitter account tried to appeal to other discourse communities, such as the ones previously mentioned, in order to gain legitimacy and more people for the march itself. The problem with bringing in these politically charged groups in, however, is that it takes the lens away from the march being about science and the cuts the government was making, and brings attention to the groups and ideas that get people heated, and therefore less likely to listen or pay attention to the march. In this case, the discourse communities do not blend well for illustrating a non-political protest towards the government’s actions. Overall, the lesson to take from this case is to be cautious when choosing outside sources to reference, as they may carry agendas and arguments that one would not want associated with what he or she is trying to get across. For my project, I am taking statements directly from staff of the Rhode Island Nature Conservancy that have to do with the parks and trails themselves, and limiting the personal blog to my own observations coupled with quotes from the interview. By doing this, I can reinforce my honest impressions with information and history presented from the interview. In his paper, Smart studies the arguments and discourse communities surrounding the debate on global warming and climate change. Smart focuses on what resources the public has to see the professional debates and ideas, and makes the claim that a well developed blog can have more of an impact on the public sphere than a publication or mention in a well-known magazine or newspaper. This is especially true, due to how quickly a blog author can update their pages, and rapidly respond to blogs make by fellows and rivals.
The concept of discourse communities arises multiple times throughout the paper. Smart uses these communities specifically when referring to scientists that follow different branches of thought towards global warming. Additionally, the whole article revolves around “the public sphere”, which in the loosest sense is the outgroup an author or informer is trying to get the attention of and appeal to. It was very interesting that Smart brought up the varying assumptions that scientists have made in the past towards the public sphere. Some assume that the public they are appealing to are fully educated, while others assume that most of the audience has a basic grasp of science. Still yet, a majority of authors write as if the audience has no prior knowledge of the subjects discussed. Smart’s findings are almost directly related to our final project, as it is about proposing new site descriptions for the Rhode Island Nature Conservancy. These descriptions are available to anyone with an interest in hiking, so making the description stand out in some way is vital to being able to “sell” the trail or preserve. Being aware of the sphere’s wants is necessary here. Key features of the hike are the true sell, such as the flora and fauna, location, accessibility, and more. By combining these selling points with visually appealing, images gathered from the site, the designers can create a webpage that would make people want to hike that particular trail. |
Details
AuthorZachary Wagner Archives |