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dcprime · 2 years

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How to cook the perfect Salmon

Salmon is a very available simple tasty dish. For the past 10 years, salmon has been my favorite food. However, in the last 7 years I have started cooking. Cooking is one of my favorite things to do. Cooking to me is an art that everyone should know how to do. I’ll have to say that salmon is the one dish that made me want to learn to cook. In cooking salmon, I have learned how I like my fish to be cooked.

To this day I still remember having my first salmon dish. The first-time having salmon my mother grilled it in our backyard. Since my first grilled salmon I have learned there are endless ways of preparing the salmon. Somehow my mom taught herself how to make the perfect salmon. I believe my mother took some techniques from many different restaurants that we would go to as a kid. Nevertheless, my mother took many of the salmon dishes and improvised to test the limits of the fish.

My salmon is something that I taught myself how to do. My first-time cooking salmon, I kind of had no choice but to learn because at the time I had a girlfriend who couldn't cook anything. When I say my ex-girlfriend couldn't cook, I mean she could burn your salad. One day I got frustrated and said today I will cook some salmon today. The first-time cooking salmon I cooked it on my George Foreman grill. The George Foreman grill does a solid job on the salmon, but the grill does sometimes stick to your fish tearing it apart. For me food is an art, so presentation is key to any food dish. Your food should always look smell and taste good. So overall I would say you want to start your fish off in a way that it's hard to mess up. For a beginner chef I say bake or broil your fish, to watch it develop into a tasty dish. Furthermore, you could cook the fish in a pan with oil, but this gives you more opportunity to mess up your food. I mention that you a have higher risk of messing up your food, because in the pan the fish cooks faster and not as consistent. In the beginning stages of cooking salmon, you want to keep things simple to understand the different levels of heat.

In creating good food dish your meal should be using all, if not most of your senses. As far as making good salmon it's all in your seasoning, the device you're cooking it in and patience. Good seasoning can either make or break your meal. So, I usually try to look out for what things work well on fish. Some of the things I would use on salmon are sea salt, Black paper, rainbow pepper, lemon pepper, garlic, lemon, basil, smoke seasoning, thyme, hibachi and Trader Joe's 21 seasoning salute and Cajun seasoning. Some other things to take notice are I only cook with vegetable oil, olive oil and coconut oil. Lately I have been only using coconut oil because it seems to spread out good and increases fat burning. I have felt that coconut oil gives a different flavor to your food. Furthermore, in making salmon I never make my fish the same way twice. Since I feel food is an art, you should always want to find ways to change up your food for improvement.

Here’s a list of different ways salmon can be prepared:

1. Grilled

2. Pooched

3. Baked

4. Broiled

5. Flipped

6. Fried

7. Smoked

8. Roasted

9. Pan Fry

In many ways Salmon is an easy but fancy main dish. Most salmon in the store are fillets without the bones. You will mainly find salmon farmed, filleted or with bones. Most of the time I only will buy filleted salmon because I really don’t want to deal with the bones. Personally, I don’t have the patience to deal with bones in my fish, but I do know that fish with bones taste different than fish without bones. On the other hand, farmed salmon to me does not look right. In farmed Salmon it usually has die in it to make it look more defined. For me farmed salmon taste more fishy and is not as juicy as other salmon. Plus, I feel that farmed salmon looks too fake in its presentation. They say that farmed salmon is unhealthy, but I say just look at it and see the differences. Anytime you take fish out of its element you can’t expect it to be the same fish.

Here a list of how I prepare my salmon:

1. Wash you're Fish

2. Cut your fish

3. Cut Skin off if you're not into that

4. Figure out What to cook

5. Season Fish

6. prepare pan with oils and seasoning

7. Get together cooking utensils

8. Cook your fish

9. Estimate how long your fish should cook

10. Cook your fish to perfection

11. Clean up and taste while the fish cooks

12. Once fish is done enjoy and think of what could be done next time.

In cooking always remember it's an art form not a science. Always cook from what you feel not always from what a cookbook says. The list on this document is one of many ways to prepare the perfect salmon. If you make your salmon right remember you can cook. Now it’s time to get creative and travel with the salmon, to your nearest kitchen and create the magic of cooking.

Dallas Crudupt 9/11/2019

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dcprime · 3 years

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You have never lived until you have had your heart broken 💔 by a woman you will never forget. 😎

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dcprime · 4 years

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The Destruction Of the Ocean Ecosystem

The Destruction

Of the Ocean Ecosystem

Dallas Crudupt

Communications 4540

February 20, 2018

In our world, today the ocean is such a mystery. It is a mystery that has such an impact on our ecosystem, but what we may not realize is how our actions impact the ocean’s ecosystem too. There is so much that is unknown, and quite difficult to really understand all the lives we cannot account for because of our actions. The ocean ecosystem is when there’s more saltwater than freshwater tangled in the balance of the landscape. The ocean ecosystem is all life found in the ocean environment. To truly improve the ocean’s ecosystem, people must educate themselves about oceans and marine organisms, and the roles each organism plays in the ecosystem. A vision of environmental change must happen for both the ocean and coastal regions. Better ecosystem-based management for the ocean is an approach to improve human activities towards underwater life. In thinking about improving the underwater ecosystem humans must think about, to what extent is the ocean damaged? We must think of how they can prevent future man-made damage. Furthermore, accepting the food chain of underwater life is also a concern. By understanding how food chains work, humans can save more lives and bring balance to the ocean. Furthermore, humans through environmental disasters such as oil spills are only taking away from balancing the ecosystem. Mankind must see that our lifestyle must change for the better of the planet.

Let’s begin with understanding what the ecosystem is. An ecosystem is a community of organisms living in their environment and can be found in the ocean, freshwater, or on land, which can be defined as biomes. Within the Earth’s ecosystems, nutrients obtained from each organism is recycled and may wind up in different ecosystems as they fall into and out of the bodies of different creatures or plants. An example of how the cycle occurs is, “When plants and animals carry out cellular respiration – break down molecules as fuel – carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere” (Khan Academy). At the same token, when they excrete waste or die, those compounds become energy for something else as they are released back into the Earth and recycled. The interaction between species creates the links within a food chain, which is a line of organisms that consume the other, passing energy and nutrients from one organism to the next. The food chain plays an important role in the ecosystem because if there a disturbance that affects one species within that chain, that one disturbance could impact the ecosystem severely. However, the more diverse the environment, the more stable it is. According to Khan Academy, “Ecosystems with higher biodiversity tend to be more stable with greater resistance and resilience in the face of disturbances, disruptive events”. Ecosystem resistance and resilience can also depend on human activity. What role do humans play in the downfall of once existed ecosystems?

In the passage below by “Wilson, E.G, Miller, K.L., Allison. and Mafliocca, M. proves that creatures of the ocean can influence protein-rich foods that people eat. The sea turtle is one of many animals that help pollinate sea life for life to grow. The seagrass is a plant that feeds the sea. This is just like how land plants create greenhouse gases; they do the same thing under the sea. People must get educated on how marine life can affect their daily diet.

As the turtle’s crop and re-crop the same plot, seagrass blades are removed from the area rather than accumulating on the bottom. This results in a 15-fold decrease in the supply of nitrogen to seagrass roots, which impacts plant species, nutrient cycling, animal densities, and predator-prey relations. As seen in the Caribbean, the decline of green sea turtles can result in a loss of productivity in the food web – including commercially exploited reef fish – decreasing the amount of protein-rich food available for people.”

Because of the population decline, the species is not able to fulfill their role in balancing the marine ecosystem. However, they are still able to help maintain healthy seagrass beds and coral reefs, which help to balance the ecosystem’s food chains and assist in nutrient cycling. As sea turtle populations decline, so does their ability to perform vital roles in maintaining the health of the world’s oceans.

There are many factors that push sea turtles towards extinction. According to the article, Why Healthy Oceans Need Sea Turtles: The Importance of Sea Turtles to marine Ecosystems, “Death and injury in commercial fisheries, loss of important habitat, pollution, and climate change are among the many human-caused threats pushing sea turtles towards extinction” ( ). We must do more to protect these creatures, and work towards rebuilding their population for the sake of the planet. By doing so, we can help restore the ocean’s ecosystem, making them strong enough to withstand other environmental disturbances. But even if the turtles are saved, there are other ways we have harmed our environment, though accidental.

The BP oil spill of 2010 was an accident that turned into an environmental disaster.

With oil consumption being such an important thing in our world. We must ask ourselves, should we continue to use oil? In the aftermath of all the damage, all these questions are asked. In the BP oil spill, live feed-underwater rov video, it clearly shows that the defective cement on the wall was partly at fault but also the rig operator Transocean and contractor Halliburton. The disaster is also known as the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The Deepwater Horizon was a semi-submersible, mobile, floating drilling rig that works in deep waters for drilling. It’s unfortunate that oil spills like this occur by accident. The question that will always be asked is, was this really an accident? By far this oil spill is more than just an accident; it is the worst accident in history.

Many of the effects of the spill have caused environmental issues. In the aftermath of the oil spill, it’s clear to say that this is a terrible spill that has outcomes for years to come. The BP oil spill left more than 200 million gallons of crude oil that were pumped into the Gulf of Mexico. The oil stayed in the ocean for over 87 days, creating the biggest oil spill in U.S. history. More than 16,000 miles of the coast have been destroyed, involving Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida. In the oil rig explosion, there were 11 fatalities, and 17 others were injured. During the time after the explosion, President Obama announced that his administration would create a $20 billion spill response fund. Many people at the time felt that BP should not be bailed out by the government because they created this problem, though it was accidental. Let’s face it, no one intends to harm the planet, but our actions show otherwise.

The documentary presented on Netflix, titled “A Plastic Ocean”, paints the picture of the world we have contributed to, but never chooses to see. We produce, and use plastic, and have been doing so since the 1950s. However, despite the need for plastic, we rarely reuse this item and dispose of it improperly. We must remember how durable plastic really is. When it falls into the ocean, it does not break down, but it becomes a hazardous tool for the surrounding organisms, and unfortunately, 80% of the waste comes from land. According to the documentary, by 2050, plastic production is going to triple.

As a result of our negligence, we have caused a disturbance for different ecosystems. Based on the aforementioned documentary, we are ruining the lives of different organisms within the ocean’s ecosystem. Throughout the film, we see footage of different oceanic species that have been impacted by plastic, as these animals are either caught in it, or they have consumed it, and the effects are causing much harm to animals. For example, “Large pieces of plastic, when eaten, can obstruct the animals’ digestive tracts of the animals, essentially starving them to death” (A Plastic Ocean). The images were quite disturbing, but it is a reality that must be recognized because this is a problem. As also mentioned in the documentary, it is believed that companies producing plastic ware should also be responsible for the disposal being done properly. However, we must also do our part. We must realize that the harm we do to the planet not only impacts our home, other species, but we are also harming ourselves.

Based on the evidence, it is clear that our planet is hurting, because of our actions. We have discussed what the ecosystem is, how organisms play a role within the different ecosystems, and how we as humans, act against the greater good for the world we live in. To truly improve the ocean’s ecosystem, people must educate themselves about oceans and the life within them. We need to understand how our actions impact the future of our world. We are truly on a decline. What can we do to be better? Should we decrease the use and need for oil? We are cutting back on our use of plastic in the San Francisco Bay Area, but are other places doing this? Perhaps we should cut down on how we are hunting, or fishing, based on how we impact food chains, which disrupt ecosystems. Furthermore, humans through environmental disasters such as oil spills are only taking away from balancing the ecosystem. Mankind must see that our lifestyle must change for the better of the planet.

What is an Ecosystem? https://www.khanacademy.org/science/biology/ecology/intro-to-ecosystems/a/what-is-an-ecosystem

Sources

Wilson, E.G, Miller, K.L., Allison. and Mafliocca, M. Why Healthy Oceans Need Sea Turtles: The Importance of Sea Turtles to Marine Ecosystem. http://oceana.org/sites/default/files/reports/Why_Healthy_Oceans_Need_Sea_Turtles.pdf

A Plastic Ocean 2016 Netflix

Amadeo, Kimberly. BP Gulf Oil Spill: Facts, Economic Impact. January 17, 2018. https://www.thebalance.com/bp-gulf-oil-spill-facts-economic-impact-3306212

Bray, Chad. BP Takes $1.7 Billion Charge Over Deepwater Horizon Spill. January 16, 2018. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/16/business/dealbook/bp-oil-spill-deepwater-horizon.html

Food Chains & Food Webs: https://www.khanacademy.org/science/biology/ecology/intro-to-ecosystems/a/food-chains-food-webs

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dcprime · 4 years

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Negative Gentrification

Dallas Crudupt

May 8, 2019

Written Policy

Negative Gentrification

As people here in America, the dream has always been to own a home. Many people here in the California do not really see the possibility of ever buying a home because the cost of living is so high. When cost of living is always a topic, gentrification becomes the centerpiece of the conversation. This paper will observe gentrification and how it has changed many communities and the people in it. As a Bay Area native I have seen it right before my eyes the ongoing changes that have occurred. For a city to fully develop, gentrification must happen to create new growth and development of the economy by displacing residents.

So, what exactly is Gentrification? According to dictionary.com, gentrification is “The buying and renovation of houses and stores in deteriorated urban neighborhoods by upper-or middle-income families or individuals, raising property values but often displacing low-income families and small business.” Many locally displaced residents never really had a plan to prepare for gentrification. For gentrification, the agents who implement plans are the States, cities, and local government. In plain text, I want to prove that gentrification helps turn cities around, but ultimately hurts residents. Residents are the bread to the sandwich, so there must be a way to keep them around. The enforcement of gentrification is carried out by the local and State government, our real-estate investors and locals who support the need for a change. The cost of the plan is anywhere from millions to billions of dollars. The cost could have such a wide range because the demand of building is based on where you are. For example, in New York city, there is not a lot of land to build on so investors have built up skyscrapers/ high-risers for their residents.

For this advocacy, one claim being made is that gentrification could be fought off by locals by learning more about gentrification and buying property. If residents just learned what gentrification really is, they would be better prepared for it. The advocacy is the sole cause for the impact because owning property is important. When people do not own their homes, it gives more possibility of being priced out of a city. Gentrification leads to impact because it creates more division of the poor vs the rich which impacts a city’s foundation. Whenever a city’s foundation is impacted it creates high levels of community conflict.

One example is from an interview by the Washington post where it was stated that, “Once people saw what was generally regarded as the first signs of gentrification, it was too late,” Gregory said. It was also mentioned that, “The plans had been in the works for 15, 20 years. They were seeing the tip of the iceberg, but underneath a massive development was already underway.” The quote from the Washington Post, is basically explaining that people are never ready to change until it’s too late to change the time.

New apartments and condos in wealthy neighborhoods, and low-income areas pay the price. The advocacy keeps low income areas stuck with no new developments because of exclusionary zoning rules. Gentrification increases the cost of rent. Oakland Magazine says “Yet while urbanists are cheering on the current housing construction boom in downtown and Uptown Oakland, they’re also sensitive to the impacts of gentrification. They say it’s unfair that nearly all the new housing is concentrated in certain areas of the city, while higher-income neighborhoods like Rockridge have effectively walled themselves off with special rules that ban large apartments buildings and condo complexes.” People are fed up with lack of housing because of overpopulation. What happened here in Oakland Magazine is a domino effect that is spreading across America. In every city in America right now, we have certain low-income areas that won’t be built up or refurbished because of zoning regulations. However, is it really zoning issues or are we just not seeing cities interested in building on low income areas?

If new apartment and housing are coming to displace locals, what about those new people coming? The NY times reported that tax breaks to mom and pop shops and pass an ordinance to control chain stores will better residential rent regulations. Gentrification creates an efficient class remake of neighborhoods. When people are pushed out of areas it doesn’t just remake the neighborhood it takes away a city’s identity.

Could Gentrification be considered a race issue? According to Oakland magazine it was 1909 advertisement in the San Francisco Call newspaper for Rock Ridge Park (now commonly known as Upper Rockridge) plainly stated a covenant attached to deeds in the neighborhood at the time: “No negroes, no Chinese, no Japanese can build or lease in Rock Ridge Park.”

Gentrification is an illusion of invulnerability. An example of this is all the Tech jobs in the Bay Area they can sell jobs seekers on how much money you can make, but when have you heard of longevity and retirement spoken? High levels of community conflict only feeds into what gentrification is and not what it could become. Gentrification may create change but according to Sarah Karlinsky of the urban planning group SPUR. She stated that “It’s a very common dynamic—of neighborhoods that are well-resourced that work to repel new housing,” said Sarah Karlinsky of the urban planning group SPUR, which advocates dense housing near major transit corridors. The quote proves that gentrification is always going to have revolt of locals to new housing.

Oakland magazine reports that in “1970, the median home price in California’s coastal metros was 50 percent higher than the rest of the country. By 2015, it was 300 percent higher. According to real estate firm Trulia, the median home price in Rockridge as of early April was $1.3 million. The median rent? $5,650 a month.” The passage by Oakland magazine gives a good explanation of just how expensive it is here in the Bay Area. If in 1970 the median home price was 50% higher than the rest of the country, there’s no way a displaced local can obtain a home with inflation. Having rent prices as high as they are, city government must soon get involved as make some changes. One change I believe that should be made is luxury condos and apartments should not even be built. If government docent step in soon the identity of the city and culture will be lost. If all the locals leave and only transplants are around, the culture has already gone and it may take a long time to build the culture.

Most of the success of Gentrification not only comes from housing and jobs it also comes from new businesses. When there’s a mass surge of people going to an area, that area must supply new jobs and restaurants and businesses. The local history may have left an area but there’s also a new opportunity to maintain reclaim your new resident. Many gnetifers will find themselves restoring the original glory of the city, with their own modifications. Adding a little charm to preserve a community is necessary at times.

To conclude this policy on gentrification you must see the overall picture of a re-investment. Whenever you gentrify something its only to make things better. Property values may increase as do social values. Gentrification is upcycling at best, but with a catch of low-income people catching the short end of the stick. Overall Gentrification maybe great for your city but not in all areas. Most poverty areas will make progressions to stay at a cost of expenses.

It all comes down to money talks. Most cities want to embrace change because creativity takes center stage to innovate our world through Gentrification. Take a stand of negative gentrification to preserve your residents from vanishing away from the community. Also take a stand to upscale your city to keep residents not price them out.

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dcprime · 4 years

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Mass Surveillance of Journalism

Dallas Crudupt

Communications 318 Law & Ethics

California State University, East Bay

Semester: Fall 2019

Prof. Kevin Pina

Given the level of mass surveillance in contemporary US society, journalists must use practical thinking when making ethical choices in their role serving the public interest that balances truth with the protection of sources and respect for privacy laws. One by Ward states, “Ethical thinking is one expression of the human ability to think practically: determining what to do, how to reach a goal, or how to solve a problem” (Ward 2010, p-54). The quote by Ward 2010 is an example of the ideology that a good journalist should follow. In journalism, it's important to remember that privacy laws are in place to keep ethical decision making under surveillance. Journalists are representatives of the public's mass surveillance of the U.S society.

In journalism, the public’s interest can determine the direction of mass surveillance. Journalists work for the public by guiding the public interest in the topic at hand. The quote from Lidberg and Muller, 2018 explains how public interest is used in journalism. “Defining the public interest can be as elusive as defining ‘national security’, but the law, as well as the ethics of journalism, provide well-established guidance.” (Lidberg and Muller, 2018, p.80). The public interest is all a part of national security and it's up to journalists to use ethics to protect the public. Mass surveillance is important, but the ethics of journalism give good guidance for the foundation of surveillance.

In mass surveillance of journalism, safety is a top concern for the journalist and the public. Surveillance happens to have evidence of the current state. Waters, 2017 gives a clarification of the safety and security needed for journalism in the following passage. “Though journalists worry about their own safety when communicating online, the primary condition that determined the use of security technology when communicating with sources was the safety and security of the source” (Waters, 2017, p.1380). Furthermore, the quote by Waters, 2017 breaks into the safety needed when a journalist is using online communication.

A journalist in the digital age, have to use technology to protect their content. In one quote by Water 2018, “One method of source protection for journalists is the use of encryption and security technologies when communicating with sources electronically” (Waters, p.1295). The quote by Waters gives evidence that encryption and security technologies are safety measures to keep journalism ethics protected. Confidential information that goes through a journalist must be protected because journalists are the providers of periodicals for the public. If a journalist doesn’t protect confidential material, it can destroy the credibility of the information.

In mass surveillance of the U.S society, journalists use practical thinking when making ethical choices in their role of serving the public interest that balances truth with the protection of sources and respect for privacy laws. As a journalist, it’s your job to hold the key to the public interest and the protection of confidential material. With the digital age growing by the second journalist have to take safety measures such as encrypted protection software. The digital age has created a new format of surveillance that challenges the ethics of journalism. The mass surveillance of the U.S will reveal through journalism, that our world is being watched by the government. It is the journalist’s job to expose evidence of the ethics in our government’s power.

References

Waters (2018) The Effects of Mass Surveillance on Journalists Relations with Confidential Sources. Digital Journalist College of Journalism and Communications, University of Florida.

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dcprime · 4 years

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Final Report: A Qualitative Case Study of Distracted DrivingAuthor: Dallas CruduptCOM 305 Qualitative Communication Research Methods Literature Review: Distracted Driving Through the Use of the Cell Phone in the CongregationDallas CruduptCOMM 305 Qualitative Communication Research Methods References

Author’s email: [email protected]

Semester: Fall 2019

Prof. Grant Kien

Today cell phone distraction has become a never-ending topic. People today do everything on their cell phones from talking on the phone, texting, video chat, email, social media, games, photos, and general internet surfing. Now I started thinking of the topic when our Instructor told us to find a form of media that puts people in danger. My first thought was distracted driving. With technology taking over our world more and more people are hooked into their cell phones. The social problem that’s being investigated is people distracted by their smartphones while driving a car. People distracted by smartphones, it’s everything from texting, social media, photos, YouTube, email and playing games. The problem was first witnessed riding in the car with a relative of mine. Everything from watching video and driving, to texting and driving everything you name it was done on a smartphone. The “Traffic Injury Prevention” (2016) detailed that 70% of respondents believe that texting and driving are illegal in the State of Arizona. For this study, I want to prove, how laws are in place for distracted driving. However, the laws are not seen as important. Is distracted driving concern for our society to change? Or is distracted driving an offense that’s water under the bridge?

In our society that grants immediate access to entertainment and information, we are faced with the dilemma of people prioritizing distractions over driving laws and ethics. The solution to distracted driving starts with people admit that they have helped create the problem. The other solution too distracted driving is getting the government to enforce the law harder. For example, Distracted driving is not held to the same standard as drink driving. Distracted driving doesn’t even have a defined punishment for doing it. Driving distracted is a risk that people are taking for their own benefit of consuming media through technology.

For this study, I’m Dallas Crudupt a student at CSUEB (California State University East Bay). I became interested in this topic because I watch it every day and care about the safety of our streets and highways to start this study, I have many assumptions for the outcome. One of my assumptions is that smartphones only fabricate distracted driving. According to this quote, “a case study design offers you the opportunity to undertake a deep (but narrow) exploration of a particular phenomenon.” Daymon, Christine and Immy Holloway’s quote (2011). For my case study, I believe that distracted driving is an overlooked topic that needs more attention to detail. I’m hoping to figure out a solution to cutting down on distracted driving. Also, another goal I have for this study is to see what people’s behaviors are for distracted driving.

Key Terms:

SMS text messages-Text messages

Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)

post-intervention observation- after the intervention.

Cognitive distraction- distractions that use rational abstract.

For the remaining sections of this case study, there’s a Literature Review, Method, Analysis and Discussion, Conclusion, References, and Appendices.

Author’s email: [email protected]

Semester: Fall 2019

Prof. Grant Kien

People today do everything on their cell phones from talking on the phone, texting, video chat, email, social media, games, photos, and general internet surfing. Lots of excessive cell phone use and other distractions are causing amplified surges of accidents. So, are cell phones really causing fatal repercussions from distracted driving? At this point today not everyone really understands what they are producing distracted drivers. Solving distracted driving would mean fewer accidents in cities and states. Having less distracted drivers out not only saves lives but also can reduce traffic and insurance rates.

This reference presents an article of information on the development of distracted driving over the years. The article highlights ways to address the problem of distracted driving. The reference dialogues about smart cars as a new way of solving distracted driving. An example, “One way to address the problem of a distracted driver is to develop distraction mitigation systems, which adapt IVIS functions according to driver state. In such a mitigation system, correctly identifying driver distractions is critical, which is the focus of this work. We envision a future where smart vehicles could detect and identify such distraction and warn the driver against it or take preventive measures.” (P-2). The example above is a preview into the future of driving safer. The next key concept is Cognitive distraction. “Cognitive distractions deal with tasks of listening, conversing, daydreaming or just becoming lost in thought. In this form of distraction, the driver is “mentally” distracted from safe driving even though they are in a safe driving posture.” The reference speaks of cognitive distractions as an everyday regular occurrence. Driving distractions are not only from smartphones, but they can also even be mental distractions.

“Who is a Distracted Driver.” This article highlights how we associate the differences between mobile phones in distracted driving. This piece uses statistical data to define what distracted driving is. “Distracted driving, defined as any instance in which a driver’s attention is taken away from the driving task to focus on another activity instead, (1) is a significant cause of automobile crashes worldwide.” (Ceschi, Andrea. Sartori, Riccardo. Sween, Madison. Tommasi, Francesco, 2017). The quote from the article “Who is a distracted driver,” defines what consist of distracted driving. Furthermore, statistics from the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration are highlighted, to show an estimate of how many people were injured in automobiles involving distracted driving.

One example proves how often text messages happen while driving in young American drivers. With texting happening so frequently it's only making texting and driving a normal habit.

“in a nationally representative sample of younger American drivers (17–26 years), researchers found that approximately one-third of respondents stated that they talked on their mobile phones and 22% sent SMS text messages, on at least half of their driving trips.” Ceschi, Andrea. Sartori, Riccardo. Sween, Madison. Tommasi, Francesco (2017).

This report references a survey conducted by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety (2008). “ACCORDING TO A RECENT SURVEY conducted by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety (2008), 83% of respondents believe that distracted drivers pose a serious threat to traffic safety.” (Horrey, William J. Kidd, David G, 2010) (page-40). Based on the quote above distracted driving creates a larger threat to drivers everywhere than expected. “One possibility is that people have inaccurate beliefs about their own ability to handle distractions while driving. Moreover, these beliefs may become more inaccurate as drivers become increasingly familiar and comfortable with distractions over time.” (Horrey, William J. Kidd, David G, 2010) (page-40). The quote above proves that distracted driving is a comfort-driven subject. It seems that the more comfortable people get with distracted driving the more it can occur. In many moments distracted driving in the U.S is on the same level of danger as drunk driving.

Distracted driving and technology go hand and hand. Today a lot of devices are used for everything. Many people have learned the habit of using technology in their everyday lives. So how can distracted driving be stopped? “In the U.S., infrastructure defenses against distracted driving include rumble strips, text stops, and law-enforcement patrols.” (Law, Bruce 2019) (Page 62). The quote above shows that in the U.S distracted driving is controlled by law enforcement. By having law enforcement involved, it sets guidelines to hold people accountable for their actions. Technology and driving don’t mix together correctly. “Texting causes cognitive, visual and manual distractions. This means a driver’s mind is not on driving, the driver’s eyes are not on the road and both hands are not on the steering wheel.” (Law, Bruce 2019) (Page 62). This citation supports the unsafe behavior of distracted driving. If texting and driving take drivers’ eyes off the road than this habit is toxic to other drivers. This habit could quite possibly kill the driver distracted and others surrounding the setting.

For this citation, the article focuses on the uses and gratification research. Now for this research project, the theory and method that works with the subject is the use and gratification approach.

“From this point of view, the approach simply represents an attempt to explain something of the way in which individuals use communications, among other recourses in their environment, to satisfy their needs and to achieve their goals, and to do so by simply asking them.” Katz, Elihu; Blumler, Jay G.; Gurevitch, Michael. (2001).

This relates to distracted driving because in driving you’re always communicating with resources in your environment. One example of this is a stoplight, it changes based on the environment.

“In a sense, the term “effect” is misleading because it suggests that television “does something to children……. Nothing can be further from the fact. It is the children who are most active in this relationship. It is they who use television rather than television that uses them.”

The quote above is an illustration of what’s going on with the cell phone and driving. In distracted driving it’s not the people using the phones, it’s the people allowing the phones to control what they’re doing.

Communication and Culture is a very important topic in our society. James uses this article to express communication through a cultural approach. The following quote explains how distracted driving can create a distance between a massage and control. “The center of this idea of communication is the transmission of signals or messages over a distance for the purpose of control.” Carey, James. (1989). (page-15). Basically, adding distance between messages can change the purpose. “If one examines a newspaper under a transmission view of communication, one sees the medium as an instrument for disseminating news and knowledge, sometimes divertissement, in a larger and larger package over greater distances.”

(Carey, James. 1989). (p-20). From this passage Carey wants readers to understand that distance in communication can be helpful to create something greater. Furthermore, Carey defines communication as, “a symbolic process whereby reality is produced, maintained, repaired and transformed.” (Carey, James. 1989) (p-23). If reality is produced, then cell phones in distracted driving only fabricate the reality.

In this source, it helps readers highlight the distinctiveness of qualitative research and how it benefits communication. “Qualitative research methods are a powerful means of gaining an in-depth, holistic understanding of the relationship between international culture and communication from the perspective of those inside society or ethnic group.” (Daymon, Christine, and Immy Holloway. 2011). (page 7). The quote explains how Qualitative research helps embrace the complexity of the research topic. In this case study, however, distracted driving has its own culture that requires qualitative research methods to determine the direction of the problem. “In the same way that communication involves negotiating different meanings in order to co-construct social and cultural realities, so too qualitative research is about creativity and flexibility.” (Daymon, Christine, and Immy Holloway. 2011). (page 8). The quote above proves that in doing qualitative research it must be treated as artwork. In qualitative research, the freedom and flexibility make the research more creative.

For Stuart Hall’s, essay readers should expect to learn how messages are created and broadcasted. In the article, a lot of the focus of messages are centered around a television. “The televisual sign is a complex one. It is itself constituted by the combination of two types of discourse, visual and aural.” Hall, Stuart. (2001) (page-511). This quote gives meaning that messages come in many different forms. With messages in media today they can be visual, discourse and aural.

“The level of connotation of the visual sign, of its contextual reference and positioning in different discursive fields of meaning and association, is the point where already coded signs intersect with the deep semantic codes of a culture and take on additional, more active ideological dimensions.” Hall, Stuart. (2001) (p-512). This quote explains how visual signs all about positing are. Media today is all about getting your message in the right location, for your audience to pay attention to the content.

Overall, the research indicates that distracted driving is an ongoing problem in society. The connection between people and technology has become a fatal relationship. Many messages to stop distracted driving have come about, but not enough to change habits. A habit is learned except distracted driving is toxic from viewing media, that can harm everyone in the vicinity.

AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety (2017) Traffic Safety Culture Index. https://aaafoundation.org/2017-traffic-safety-culture-index/

Abouelnaga, Yehya. Eraqi, Hesham. Moustafa, Mohamed N. (2019) Driver Distraction Identification with an Ensemble of Convolutional. Page 1-12.

Carey, James. (1989). “A Cultural Approach to Communication”. Communication as Culture: Essays 2 on Media and Society. Boston: Unwin/Hyman, pp.13-36

Daymon, Christine and Immy Holloway. (2011). Qualitative research methods in public relations and marketing communications [electronic resource], 2nd ed. New York, NY: Routledge. http://csuh.iii.com/record=b2090453~S0

Delgado, M. Kit, McDonald Catherine & Wanner, Kathryn J. (2016). Adolescent Cellphone Use While Driving: An Overview of the Literature and Promising Future Directions for Prevention. Media and Communication Volume 4, Issue 3 Pages 79-89.

Hall, Stuart. (2001). “Encoding/Decoding.” The Cultural Studies Reader, 2nd ed. Simon During (ed). New York: Routledge, pp.507-519.

Horrey, William J. Kidd, David G. (2010) Distracted Driving: Do divers’ perceptions of distractions become more accurate over time? Professional Safety. Page 40-45.

Katz, Elihua; Blumler, Jay G.; Gurevitch, Michael (2001) “Uses and Gratifications Research.” Public Opinion Quarterly; Winter73-Winter74, Vol. 37 Issue 4, p509.

Law, Bruce. (2019). The Role of Technology in Distracted Driving: Checkpoints. Professional Safety PSJ. Page 62-63.

Robinson, James D. Tian, Yan. (2017). Predictors of Cell Phones Use in Distracted Driving: Extending the Theory of Planned Behavior. Department of Communications & Media, University of Missouri-St. Louis, Department of Communication, University of Dayton. Page 1066-1075.

The method of my study is to create more knowledge about distracted driving. I also want to show that people are aware of doing distracted driving but have no concern about changing their behavior. For this case qualitative case study, I will be presenting 4 different data collection methods from our class readings. I will be providing evidence from 12 different sources of data from peer-reviewed journals. The list below is the different tactics that were used to do this case study.

Case Study-Distracted Driving. The foundation of my research is scholar journal articles, local news, class readings, government safety websites.

Historical analysis- For this genre of Distracted driving the first historical moment happened in 2001. One quote by Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine reports “On November 1, 2001, New York became the first state to implement a law prohibiting all drivers from talking on a hand-held cell phone while driving. Currently, a total of 12 states and the District of Columbia have such laws.” (AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, 2018). The quote gives evidence that 2001 is the first year that the government decided to get involved in gratifying change in driver’s safety. However, during 2001 texting and driving weren’t the problem at the time, it was talking with the phone in hand while driving.

Discourse analysis-- With messages in media today they can be visual, discourse and aural. Lots of body language messages were decoded and tone in the dialog. “The televisual sign is a complex one. It is itself constituted by the combination of two types of discourse, visual and aural.” Hall, Stuart. (2001) (page-511).

Participant observation- Observation of Distracted Driving. Observation of Distracted Driving. The location of the observation was I580 East Keller exit Overpass. Date/time started:11/11/2019 3:45pm.

Inductive analysis was used to create codes of theories from our reading.

For the Analysis and Discussion, the research found 3 code concepts that are found from the class readings. The codes that were found in relation to this case study are the Gratification theory, Discursive Theory and Ritual Theory. For Gratification Theory, we all use smartphones as instant entertainment or the demand for something. Example from reading, “If one examines a newspaper under a transmission view of communication, one sees the medium as an instrument for disseminating news and knowledge, sometimes divertissement, in a larger and larger packages over greater distances.” Carey (1989 p-20).

In Discursive Theory messages in media today they can be visual, discourse and aural. Lots of body language messages were decoded and tone in the dialog. “The televisual sign is a complex one. It is itself constituted by the combination of two types of discourse, visual and aural.” Hall, Stuart. (2001) (page-511).

Ritual Theory- Carey explains that everyone is in a symbolic reality of satisfaction one gets from their items. Carey defines communication as, “a symbolic process whereby reality is produced, maintained, repaired and transformed.” (Carey, James. 1989) (p-23). If reality is produced, then cell phones in distracted driving only fabricate the reality.

Distracted driving and technology go hand and hand. Today a lot of devices are used for everything. Many people have learned the habit of using technology in their everyday lives. So how can distracted driving be stopped? “Texting causes cognitive, visual and manual distractions. This means a driver’s mind is not on driving, the driver’s eyes are not on the road and both hands are not on the steering wheel.” (Law, Bruce 2019) (Page 62). This citation supports the unsafe behavior of distracted driving. If texting and driving take drivers’ eyes off the road than this habit is toxic to other drivers. This habit could quite possibly kill the driver distracted and others surrounding the setting.

The AAA Foundation for traffic says “A majority of respondents (87.6%) support legislation against reading, typing or sending a text message or email and 73.4% of drivers support having a law against using a hand-held cellphone while driving. However, only 40.9% support an outright ban on using any type of cell phone (including hands-free) while driving.” (AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, 2018).

Based on the quote above people want to stop distracted driving by supporting laws to be enforced. On the other hand, people only fully support stopping the hand-held use of the phone. Drivers may view distracted driving as unsafe but there’s a level of acceptable behavior that threatens safety. Overall AAA believes there’s a discordance in personal safety and accepting the correct driving ethics. It makes no sense that people know using a cell phone while driving is bad but still do it.

As far as distracted driving goes it’s still a very new topic. The advancement of the cell phone is the subject that has made distracted driving more and more relevant. In our society that grants immediate access to entertainment and information, we are faced with the dilemma of people prioritizing distractions over driving laws and ethics. Many messages to stop distracted driving have come about, but not enough to change habits. A habit is learned except distracted driving is toxic from viewing media, that can harm everyone in the vicinity. One thing that was never expected was in one of my interviews I learned that people are distracted before they even get into the car. Our society today is way too impatient everyone wants things microwaved. This microwave effect is from people wanting instant success.

With distracted driving people are getting instant entertainment through their smartphones. Based on this case study it has been discovered that driving distracted and using a cell phone is too new of a topic to get the attention of lawmakers to create new laws. However, driving is a privilege, not a right, so without the right driving ethics, the privilege of driving should be taken away. After all the research in this case study, I have concluded that it may be a long time before distracted driving becomes a state of emergency. Just like how people want to say distracted driving kills people. It must be noted that distracted driving is a choice that can have some unfortunate results. I would like to end highlighting that this semester, I have become a victim of an accident caused by distracted driving so be safe because everyone is not paying attention to the road.

Appendices

Depth interviewing- Depth Interview Questions

Tell me about [Smartphone Use of media] and what you most enjoy consuming on it.

Step by step, describe a typical experience of using your [Smart Phone] to consume [media].

Describe a time when you were consuming [ media/YouTube social media] and something happened that gave you something to talk about with others

Probe: What happened? Who did you talk to about it? Explain how the conversation went

Tell me about a conversation you had with someone else about something that you saw or read while using [media] that made you feel upset

Describe for me a time when something happened over [social media] or in [you tube] that surprised you

Probe: What happened? How did you react? Who did you talk to about it? What kind of conversation did you have?

How do you feel about some of the characters and people you see on [Smart phones] or in [social media]?

Probe: In what ways do you identify or not identify with the characters and people you see in your media use?

Tell me about a time you noticed a moment of discrimination (racism, sexism, etc.) in using [social media] or consuming [you tube]

Probe: Describe how it made you feel. Tell me what action you took at the time if any.

Tell me about a time when using [A Smart phone] or consuming [you tube] made you feel stronger and better about yourself

Probe: What happened? How did you react? Who did you talk to about it? What kind of conversation did you have?

Tell me about a time when something you saw while using your [social media] or consuming [you tube] prompted you to think differently or even change your mind about an issue

Probe: What was the issue? What information did you receive that made the difference? What kinds of conversations did you have about it while making up your mind? What kinds of conversations did you have after about it?

Tell me about a time when using [Smart phone] or watching [you tube] made you feel closer and more connected to other people

Probe: What happened? How did you react? Who did you talk to about it? What kind of conversation did you have?

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