Samantha Saunders Week 7 Collection

1. Key takeaway points:

a. There are always more perspectives to take when approaching a problem.

b. Sometimes the most efficient solution is the simplest, such as stating the truth.

c. Language embodies an entire culture worth of perspective.

d. Humor is the secret weapon to getting people to listen .

2. The stories that I chose to save to my collection range from an array of topics like air pollution, school discipline, social norms, language, and traffic signs. Out of these stories, I found myself fixated on “The Destructive Influence of Imaginary Peers.” This article highlights the irony of social interaction, in which we act and answer how we think our peers act and answer. The truth is, people everywhere believe that they are being themselves and exemplifying personal statements of belief when they are actually subconsciously channeling society’s norms around them. We have this fear embedded inside each of us, whether we like to admit it or not, that if we say something so abstractly different from the others, we will never be able to take it back. I love the first sentence of this article that says, “We humans irrationally think we’re rational.” I chuckled to myself when I read it because it is true. The “imaginary peers” around us affect our answers to simple questions. If everyone is answering the way they believe their peers to be answering, who is actually telling the truth? Perkins and Berkowitz then had the epiphany that in order to create social change, all that’s needed is the truth. If we think that bad behavior is the social norm, we are likely to live up to it. This realization could be applied in an extensive number of situations.

3. I love finding articles about newly innovative ways to approach a societal issue, from environmental to educational approaches. I realized that the stories I saved to my collection had to do with perspectives I rarely took myself. For example, one story I saved described how an ingenious man invented a device that sounded bell noises at a higher frequency when the air detected denser air pollution. In this manner, the people who heard the device were made very aware of the polluted air around them, and they had no choice but to listen to the bells until the air becomes cleaner. Also, I learned that interventions are being introduced in schools as a replacement to punishment. I was unaware of this trend, but it was intriguing to read because of my own studies at UF. Lastly, reading these stories has inspired me to think more creatively and act on my ideas.

4. All of the stories I read were interesting and diverse, however, I found one story I would give an “honorable mention” to: “Making Gum in the Mayan Rainforest.” The story explained the sustainable manner of making a profit off the sap of the Mayan trees. The chicle that is sold is distributed to 30 countries worldwide. I found this discovery to be unique in itself because the process takes real man-powered labor. Ramírez is an agronomist who dedicates his life to scaling these trees and extracting the sap, an honorable job. There are few agricultural practices that produce a profit and do not negatively affect the environment or habitats.

5. I am constantly amazed at the human race and the eye-opening, incredible inventions and practices that come from it. Reading about people who think outside of social norms and are not scared to do something new inspires me. I am at a loss of words to portray how diverse every person’s perspective is and how many realizations that can be made when collaboration exists. I am a firm believer in constant encouragement and the necessity to lift others and their beliefs up to the sky.

Collection