Research Question

I am really not sure how to phrase this into a question, but I know that I want to look at how a jury's verdict is affected by how evidence is presented to them. I think this will work since it does have to do with communication, but I don't know how to make my idea into a good research question.

What kind of writing do forensics scientists do when they are preparing to go to trial.

Textual Rhetorical Analysis

            I am going to be textually analyzing the article, Helping Severely Injured Children Make a Recovery. I will be looking at what the context tells us about the writer, how the organization of the text helps the writer get their point across, and how the delivery of the information aids in helping the reader understand.

            The context of this article helps us learn a lot about this author which helps us to understand the article. Going by the article as a whole you can tell that the doctor probably has a lot of experience in her field. This could also lead to the possibility that the woman is older and has a different view of things then a younger doctor might which could affect how she plans things and ideas that she might come up with. She might be more likely to stick with a method that is known to work than to try a new method that she was not taught in medical school. The writer is also clearly writing for others in the medical field which is fairly obvious since she uses words that the average person might not understand. For example when she is talking about procedures she uses works like hypotensive, oximeter, and Glasgow coma scale which are all words that are only used in a medical field. The author assumes that the people who will most likely be reading this article will have a basic medical knowledge and will understand these words and know what they mean. The words also help the writer get their point across without having to add in long descriptions about what each medical term was which would have complicated and detracted from the point of the article.

            The organization of the article helped a lot in the understanding of the article. The title article tells you right away what you will be reading about. The article is further separated into three parts which allow the information to be organized chronologically and by importance. The order of the paper makes it easy to understand the order in which things should be done when a child comes into a hospital who has experience trauma. A checklist could probably be made from this article for other doctors to use when treating a child due to the neatness of the organization within the article. The separate subheadings also help you to understand when exactly the author is changing the topic. The first subheading “Oxygen, Airway, Fluids”, tells you exactly what you will be reading about in the next couple of paragraphs and the second subheading, “Outcomes”, tells you that the final paragraph is about what happens to children after they have been successfully treated for these symptoms. Putting all these things together leads to a much better understanding of the topic that the author is writing on.

            The delivery of the article was helpful in understanding it. The use of subtitles aided greatly in understanding the topic the author was writing about. The spacing also helped as it allowed you time to switch to a different topic without confusing the information you just read and the information you are about to read. The lack of pictures or diagrams did detract some from the article. A diagram or picture would have been useful to help with understanding how to accomplish the procedures mentioned such as the intraosseous needle insertion and it could have helped give direction to a doctor who was reading the article and needed assistance in how to complete a needle insertion. The pictures or diagrams would need to be picked carefully though or though could lead to distracting people from the point of the article.

            Overall the organization, delivery, and context of the paper assists in helping the author make their point. Without these things the reader could be confused and end up not understanding the point of the article.

Textual Rhetorical Analysis Article

Helping severely injured children make a full recovery

Shock is the most reversible cause of death in children, but recognizing and treating it in the early stages can be uniquely challenging. Presenting symptoms differ from those in adults, and a child's anatomy and physiology make management more difficult, according to Brenda M. Schiltz, M.D., of Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. And, she points out, children pose investigational challenges, too.
"The hardest thing with children and shock is that they can't always tell you what's wrong. An infant or young child brought in from a trauma scene is probably crying, but whether from fear or because they're hurt often isn't clear. They may be seriously injured, so you have to quickly differentiate between pain, anxiety and serious injury," she says.
For instance, although tachycardia is the first sign of shock in children and infants, it can result from other causes, including emotional upset. Dr. Schiltz explains, "Is there tachycardia because the child is struggling to breathe or because circulation is compromised, or is it simply stranger anxiety? It's certainly possible for a child to have tachycardia not caused by shock, but if tachycardia is there, you have to find to find out why."
First, address the ABCs — airway, breathing, circulation — she advises. "In children, you can rely on capillary refill to tell if perfusion is impaired. Are the legs mottled and skin cool to the touch? These are all abnormal signs in children, who have really healthy cardiovascular systems."
But a strong cardiovascular system can also mask serious problems, keeping blood pressure normal until shock is nearly irreversible. Even profoundly hypotensive children can be resuscitated and make a full recovery, Dr. Schiltz says, "but you absolutely want to recognize and treat shock long before they get to that point."

Oxygen, airway, fluids

For children in shock, Dr. Schiltz recommends starting oxygen immediately, even if oximeter readings are normal. In addition, the airway needs to be secured if a child is unable to maintain patency or is very hypoxic, has compromised perfusion or the Glasgow Coma Scale is less than 8.
Intubation in children presents special difficulties, though. A child's airway is anatomically different from an adult's, and children have small mouths, so there is less space for equipment. Infants, especially, may become profoundly bradycardic during intubation.
Dr. Schiltz says alternatives exist for providers who aren't comfortable with pediatric intubation. "They can hand ventilate the patient until a pediatric specialist is available," she suggests. "Or they can put in an artificial airway such as an LMA or call an anesthesiologist for help."
Rapid restoration of blood volume is also essential, but children's subcutaneous fat and small veins make obtaining intravenous (IV) access challenging. Dr. Schiltz says options exist there, too, particularly intraosseous infusion, a temporary measure that can be used when intravenous access fails.
"You should try to get IV access right away, but if you're struggling, insert an intraosseous needle into a long bone, such as the tibia or femur," she says. "It's more important to get vascular access early than spend a lot of time struggling to put in an IV."
Intraosseous infusion, first described in the 1930s, has experienced something of a resurgence, especially in pediatric resuscitation. The venous circulation around and within the marrow makes bone an effective site for the rapid infusion of fluids and drugs. In experienced hands, intraosseous access can be established in about one minute or less.
What's really important, Dr. Schiltz stresses, is constant reassessment. "The hemodynamics will tell you quickly what's happening. In the majority of pediatric trauma patients who are tachycardic, the heart rate will come down quickly with good fluid resuscitation. If it doesn't, you have to think about ongoing blood loss," she says.

Outcomes

Dr. Schiltz says that despite the challenges for providers, children usually recover quickly when traumatic shock is well managed. "When bleeding is controlled and blood volume restored, tachycardia will normalize, perfusion will get better, skin color will improve and capillary refill will be brisk. We can reverse everything that's going on assuming we have control of the injuries, and we often can restore children to their previous state of health."

http://www.mayoclinic.org/medical-professionals/clinical-updates/trauma/helping-severely-injured-children-make-full-recovery

Rhetorical Analysis Paper

            I picked this picture for a couple of reasons. The first reason is that I have been in the hospital a couple of times to have surgeries so I felt like I could really connect with this picture. The second reason is that I really like any kind of medical tv show. Some of them might not be the most accurate (Grey’s Anatomy), but some them are more closer to the real thing (Untold Stories of the ER). My third and final reason is that I actually was really interested in being a doctor for while. I kind of lost interest when I learned what classes they had to take and how hard it is to actually get into medical school. Still even if I might not want to be a doctor anymore, its cool to imagine what it would be like.

            When I started analyzing this pictured I decided to start first with the different colors. I looked at what the doctors were wearing and what colors were in the surrounding areas. After this I looked specifically at what was in the background. The biggest things I noticed was the light. Next I focused on the doctors themselves. I looked at how they were standing and how they were holding themselves. I also looked at specific things about each of the doctors such as skin tone, age, and gender.

            In this picture the doctors are in a position of power. The camera is facing them which means that they are higher than you are. This leads to a lesser feeling or like you have less power than they do. The doctors who are the focus of the picture are also older which helps support this. The doctors who are off to the side and a little farther back are both younger and possible more inexperienced.

I think this picture was taken a while ago due to the fact that there is only one woman in this picture. The other three doctors are all male which could be an attempt to lead people to think that men have power and women don’t. The woman could also be a nurse and not a doctor which would also lead the insinuation that women shouldn’t be doctors. Another supporting fact is that all of the doctors are white. This displays the inequality there used to be between white and black people. Not just education wise, but economically as well.

The picture also has a feeling of sterilness and harshness. There is nothing on the walls and only a few pipes on the ceiling. It combined with the harshly bright light that is almost like a spotlight assists in creating the grim atmosphere. This atmosphere gives you the feeling that whatever is going on inside the room is very serious. The doctors facial expressions help support this as well. They all are wearing expressions that are worried and focused. Clearly the situation is something to be worried about. Also adding to the feeling of sterilness are the clothes the doctors are wearing. The blue scrubs, face masks, and hair nets all make you feel like the room they are in is very clean. Their clothes also serve to depersonalize them. You are not able to see much other then there eyes.

I chose this picture because I felt like I could really connect to this picture. I also enjoyed analyzing this picture because even if I might not be able to be a doctor I still like imagine what it would be like and what kinds of problems they could run into. I really liked trying to imagine what they could be looking at and maybe I just watched to many episodes of Untold Stories of the ER while I was writing this, but I came up with some pretty interesting things.

Visual Rhetorical Analysis Picture

Assumption: The doctors are important and have a lot of power.

Evidence: The camera is looking directly up at them.

I think this picture is for other doctors. I think that it is supposed to be a warning of some kind. I feel like this picture could be from a poster that you would see around a hospital so that doctors remember to do something before, during, or after surgery. Maybe they want doctors to double check to make sure they don’t leave anything inside their patients when they are finishing up.

Rhetorical Analysis Thoughts

                I honestly can’t think of a specific time when I have used rhetorical analysis. I know I have used because I remember what I thought. I have made assumptions a lot. This has led to some good and some bad conclusions. My bad conclusions were usually based on stereotypes or things that I made sense. Some recent ones I have come up with are that people who wear cowboy boots or work boots tend to have a major that has to do with Ag science or veterinary medicine. People who dress fashionably everyday are probably design or fashion students. Honestly though I don’t like to make assumptions about people because I don’t like to think people making assumptions about me. Usually any assumptions I make are during times when I am bored or they are made without much thought on my part. This generally means that my assumptions are not well thought out or they have little to no actual evidence to support them. This means that I am not very good at this and I should probably practice it more to improve it.

Summary Reflection

                I didn’t think writing the summary was too bad. I am used to writing summaries because I was in speech for two years doing radio and television broadcasting. All we basically did was summarize articles and I think I got pretty good at it. I also actually enjoying doing this. It is better than a research paper, but not quite as good as creative writing. The article I picked was in the medical field and I thought it was very technical. It was definitely written for other doctors to read. I ended up looking up some of the terminology to be able to fully understand what they were talking about. It did help that I had taken an Anatomy class so I could make rough guesses about what they were discussing.