Dialogue of Sources

JD: Lately, there has been quite a discussion about whether organic foods are better than non-organic foods or if the two are equal. I have brought in some farmers and experts to let us know their opinion on the difference between the two. Organic Farmers and Growers are a leading UK organic control that inspect and license organic food and farming. Jenni Snook is a natural health and personal development expert against the use of organic foods. I also brought in a specialist, H. Young, to give us some feedback and see what he believes is best. So first I would just like to start off by asking you, where do each of you stand on the issue against organic food?

OFG: It has been such a battle to get shoppers to trust us and to buy organic products. The biggest argument we hear, 25% of our respondents, is that non-organic is just as good as organic. What we do not understand is how you cannot see that organic food is better. We need to get our respondents to understand what our organic products offer. We take pride in our methods of producing our products and protecting our animals welfare. It is not that our products are of better quality, but rather the pride we take in the way that our food is produced. Maybe if our responders knew that we are not responsible for soil depletion, or that we let our animals range outdoors, or that we do not use poisonous herbicides they would think differently.

JS: People go back and forth as to whether or not organic is better than non-organic. A study done in 2002 showed that some organics revealed some pesticide residue as well, which means that organic food still needs to be washed just like non-organic. Some chemists believe that any chemical food residue does not cause cancer, but there has been studies to show that half of all natural chemicals do cause cancer. As for the soil depletion it is found that it is not due to the organic product, but rather to the crop rotation done while growing the plant. It is harder for organic farms to keep mold, pests, and other diseases from their crops which results in a greater crop loss and causing these farmers to take longer a time and more land to produce their products. As for treating the animals better I believe that all farmers care about there animals and would treat them with respect. I think the only time that you see people mistreating their animals is when the business grows too big and they are focusing more on the money.

HY: The term organic means different things in different countries because each country has its own guidelines as to what can be declared organic, but in most countries the rate of organic farmers is going up. The main thing agreed upon in most countries is that organic food does not contain any GMOs whatsoever. A GMO is a genetically modified organism, and it goes against everything that organic is all about. In fact some countries are starting to ban GMOs all together. Some countries in Europe have been banned all together. Farmers use the GMOs to inject genes so that the crop or animal will produce pesticides all on its own. As for the studies that say that there is pesticides in organics, it is almost nearly impossible because people from the health department check in on all of the organic farms to make sure that they are running them properly. As for the natural pesticides or chemicals that people think organic farmers use, they really rarely use them at all. If they do it is just to fight pests, and they need to get permission from the health department before they do so. Jenni is right on the mistreatment of animals. Most farmers love their animals and would never do anything to harm them. Research has shown that mostly the mistreatment of animals have been found in bigger industries that care more about getting the product and the money.

Working Hypothesis

Farmers all over the nation have been switching to organic farming to reach a wide variety of costumers and to make more money, but is it really worth it?  Lately, there has been a big debate going around whether it is worth it to buy organic foods rather non-organic foods.  Some people believe that there is no difference between the two and it is just a waste of money.  In a letter to the editor I came across the woman believes that you do not need to waste your money on organic foods or fat free foods because they are just as equal as non-organics with pesticides.  She says to enjoy your strawberries in January, which was once unimaginable.  I believe that there has to be some advantage to eating organics instead of non-organics.  I am going to look into this research and see which organics are better, or if there are some organics that are equal to non-organics.  There are several studies done on each of these and I am going to figure out if there really is a difference between the two.

Annotated Bibliography

Dangour, Alan D., et al. "Nutrition-related health effects of organic foods: a systematic review."American journal of clinical nutrition 92.1 (2010): 203-210. Agricola. EBSCO. Web. 2 Nov. 2010.

This article was a review of all of the articles from January 1, 1958, to September 15, 2008, about organic foods and whether or not they are helpful. They found that there is no significant benefit for eating organic rather than non-organic. I think this source can be credible, but the only chose 12 out of over 98,000 articles and they could have been a little bias on the ones the picked. There could have been other articles that gave organics more credit as to being healthier. This source is relevant to my argument because it goes along with Betsy's argument, so, I can use this article for my farmer's position to show that there is no significant difference. 

MacRae, R., et al. "Ten percent organic within 15 years: Policy and program initiatives to advance organic food and farming in Ontario, Canada [electronic resource]." Renewable agriculture and food systems24.2 (2009): 120-136. Agricola. EBSCO. Web. 2 Nov. 2010.

This article is from Canada and states that organic is the way to go. This is a key article for my letter back to Betsy because I can use it to prove that it has shown that organics have shown to be more healthier. The article states that "substantial environmental and economic benefits can arise from organic farming adoption." This article states that Canada is trying to become mostly organic after 15 years having 5,343 organic farmers. This article is a little helpful showing that there are advantages to going organic and little but of a farmers view, but it talks mostly about the farmers so I think I am going to find another article to really show the advantages of going organic. 

Research Proposal

Are Organic Foods Better than Non-Organic?

Today people buy organic foods because they believe that they are safer and more healthier for you, but there are so many organic companies now how can you be sure that they are truly organic? There are the bigger organic companies and the smaller organic companies. Some companies just use partly organic, while others are fully organic. Some people are questioning whether organic foods are even that much better for you than non-organic foods, and they want to know if it is worth it to pay higher prices for these foods just because the label says they are healthier. 

Betsy Hart is a mother who wrote a letter to argue that there is no difference between organic and non-organic foods. She persuades her audience to just stick with the cheaper foods made with pesticides. She states that studies have shown that there is no difference between the two. She would rather save money and stick with the cheaper foods because she truly believes there is no difference between them.  She states that doctors and researchers have done studies and they have shown that life expectancy has gone up and cancer patients has gone down all while we have been eating pesticides and strawberries in January, which was once unthinkable.

This letter interested me because I wanted to find out more about organics and whether or not there really is a difference. Betsy states all these facts but never gives exact information about a specific study or researcher.  So I am going to look up studies done by researchers to find out whether or not non-organic food is the same as organic foods. I think that there has to be a difference just simply because pesticides are poison, and I do not think that eating them is the reason our life expectancy has gone up and our cancer patients has gone down. 

Methods

I am going to use the library's resources to find helpful articles to back up my beliefs so that I can write a believable argument against Betsy. I want to find articles that talk about the differences between organic and non-organic foods. I am going to look into whether or not eating pesticides has lowered cancer patients and risen the life expectancy. I am then going to consider a farmer's point of view for my third letter. I am going to research what farmers believe, and what they go through to make these products. I want to figure their point of view on the subject and why they choose to use pesticides instead of going organic, and I want to know whether they believe there is a difference or not between the two.

Sources

I found two articles. One stating that there is no difference between organics and non-organics, and the other stating that there is a benefit to going with organics. I going to go over each of these articles to see their opinions and what research they did to conclude to this opinion. 

Timeline

11/2 - Research Proposal Due

11/2 - 11/4 Begin Researching Topic using Alden Online Databases

11/4 - Working Hypothesis Due and Annotated Bibliography Due

11/4 - 11/8 Continue Researching and Begin Rough Draft

11/9 - Rough Draft of Final Paper Due

11/9- 11/11 Revise Paper

11/11 - Final Draft Due

Significance

I hope to find that there is a difference between organic and non-organic foods. I am not really sure on which position I take yet because I have never really looked into the topic. I am hoping to find which one is better so that I can take a stance for it and write an excellent letter back to Betsy arguing my opinion. I am also extremely interested in researching the farmer's point of view because I would like to know how much more expensive or difficult it is to become an organic farm. I am simply interested to find out whether organic is the way to go or not because I know people that will only eat organic, so I'm interested to find out if there wasting their time and money or if it really is better to eat all organic foods. 

Rogerian Argument

The main argument in my letter is that this woman believes that there is no difference between organic and non organic food.  She thinks that people should buy the cheap, processed foods rather than the expensive organics because they are equal. She supports her theory by using a recent piece in Time Magazine where a doctor states that eating organic food is not any safer than eating produce with fertilizers and pesticides. She mostly just states her side and why she believes they are the same, but she does state some reasons why people would buy organics over non-organics. She states all the benefits of organics, but then she refutes them saying there really is no difference between the two.  She uses studies and magazines to refute the idea that organic has more nutrients and is healthier than non-organic. I think she defines the issue very well, she has evidence to support her issue and states her opinion right away. 

Betsy Hart believes that buying organic foods is just a waste of money. She does not believe that low-fat foods or healthier foods are worth your time. She believes to stick with the cheap fertilized and pesticide foods. She states that organics are too expensive and a waste of money. She talks about Time magazine and studies stating that their is no difference between the two, but she does not refer to specific studies. She states that people have been eating them for years and our life expectancy has gone up and there have been less cases of cancer, but she does not take into account that this could be due to something else. There may be one study that shows that organics are not healthier than non organics, but there also have been studies that show they are healthier. Think about it your putting poison in your body, how could it not be healthier to have organics instead?

At a Glance

There aren't very many topics that interest me. I rarely pass by the news seeing something that catches my eye, and I hate politics. They bore me and I just do not care to talk about them. One topic I do like to hear about is problems in rural cities. Whether they have problems because they are poor or they are flowing with criminals I like to see what is going on with them and what the government is doing (or not doing) to help. I think cities have been becoming too poor causing children to not get an appropriate education. Without kids getting the education they need and their families not having money it leads them to get into trouble and join gangs for protection and find other illegal ways to make money.

I also like to read about the recent noise violations here at OU. I think these violations are getting a little ridiculous. In an article I read a few weeks ago, said that the police have given away double what they gave away all of last year in just the beginning weeks of this quarter. Its always interesting to read about topics that you have been a part of and I have been at parties where people have gotten a noise violation a few times. One, was not even a party we were just hanging out on my friends balcony. I think the police have been overreacting a little too much this year. 

Letter to the Editor

The letter I chose is from a resident of Athens complaining about the other citizens of Athens who are complaining about the loud noise ordinance.  He believes that people need to stop complaining about the loud noises when they live in a college town. He bashes the police and says that they are acting like "puritans" and trying to take away all of the happiness the students have. He makes a good point stating that the police do not say anything about leaf blowers, mufflers, or horns, and even though they are going off during they day they still show to have stressful effects.

I, of course, totally agree that this noise law is a little bit too ridiculous. I like how he pointed out that this is a college town and people have been putting up with these conditions for years, I do not get why all of sudden they need to shut down parties because they are getting to loud.  I think he did a good job putting this letter together, but I would have made it a little more formal to get more attention.  He calls the policemen all sorts of names throughout the letter, when these are the people who have the power to change the law.  If I were writing this letter I would not call them names because this will just make them angry and not even pay attention to the letter. 

Letter to the Editor

Collaborative Challenge

My husbands face has been all over the news for days. His job has gotten him in tremendous trouble by getting him stuck underground. I have always warned him about how dangerous this job is, but he loves his work. I have not seen him in days, but yet all of America knows his face. His co-workers, friends, and family have all been so supportive while they have been working on getting him out. It has been the longest days of my life waiting for him. Our three boys have asked me every day when daddy is coming home, only making it harder on me to see there faces when I tell them I don't know. We pray everyday that he will come home safely to us. Today, is the day, I just know he will be coming home with me today. I arrive at the site to see the progress, and what to my surprise I see my handsome husband. I have never been more happy to see him. He looked so dirty and hungry, but he was still the most attractive man I have ever seen. I am the luckiest girl in the world, my husband has overcome the impossible and is coming back home to his family.

Halloween

Informal -
Halloween is one of the most important days in an OU student's life. People come from all over just to see this party. Every year I have had the time of my life staying up all night celebrating Halloween. Athens would have nothing exciting about them if we decided to stop celebrating. Even though most students think it is just about the drinking, this Halloween celebration is for so many people. The kids who get to go trick or treating down court street, and all of the townies that finally have something fun to do that night. Our Halloween celebration is one of the biggest parties in the country. We should definitely keep it. Getting rid of the Halloween celebration would be like getting rid of an old tradition that we do every year. We just cannot do it. So save Halloween for the students of OU and the townies of Athens and everyone will be happy.

Formal -
The Halloween celebration at Ohio University is not only an event for the students, but it is also an event for all the residents of Athens, Ohio. The kids whose neighborhoods cannot afford trick or treating can come to Court Street on this day and go to all of the business receiving candy. People come from all over to be able to see this magnificent celebration. With two bands playing and all of the interesting costumes, anyone would enjoy this. People who come from other countries can understand what Halloween is all about. This celebration has been going on for several years and is more like a tradition now than just a party. People have been coming to Athens, OH to celebrate Halloween for years, and to take it away would just disappoint and upset several people. Being a part of such a celebration is something you can brag about to anyone. Every time I tell someone I am from Ohio University the first thing they ask me is about Halloween. It is a special part of Athens that no one should take away.

Kodak Commercials

So Kodak Pre-writing Checklist

So Kodak - Trey Apartment View, Pitbull Club

Content : This Kodak ad is selling their new product called So Kodak where you can upload your photos from your camera straight to Facebook and other online places.

Message: This whole ad campaign is selling their new product by using Drake, Trey Songz, and Pitbull. These three artists have interacting commercials where it shows how easy it is to send your pictures online with these new cameras.

Character and Setting: The Trey ad shows him getting a picture from Drake online. The picture shows Drake showing off that he's in the studio. so Trey says, "Check out this view." He takes a picture of him and his girl on the balcony of his apartment over looking the city, and then it shows how easy it is to just click who you want to send it to. The Pitbull ad shows him at the club getting Trey's picture of his balcony view, so Pitbull says, "Well good things come in threes." He takes a picture of him and three girls, and then it also shows how easy it is to click the names of the people and then send them to their e-mail or Facebook or where ever.

Story: The storyline between these ads is showing that no matter where you are, whether the balcony of your apartment, a recording stuido, a club dancing which chicks, you can always send your pictures using this new camera.

Theme: The underlying message of the new So Kodak cameras is that it is fast and easy to use, and even cool singers like Trey and Pitbull use the came so it must be awesome.

Medium: These advertisements are commercials online and on the television. These commercials work well for the new camera line because it shows what they can do, and they got famous people to show them off so they will most likely be more popular.

Historical Context: These ads just started showing in the us. So Kodak is a new camera line that just came out. It is a fake need that people will feel like they have to get this camera after seeing the commercial.

Word and Image: I think if you took out the words of this commercial you would still get the point, but then you would not know what type of camera it is. The words put more meaning into the commercial, and you can tell that there is a battle of pictures between these three characters. Without the image this commercial would not be very effective at all, you would not see the apartment view, the three girls at the club, or how this camera can upload photos straight to e-mail and Facebook.

Layout: These ads make sure to show the great pictures that the camera takes, also while showing Pitbull and Trey click on Facebook and the people they want to send it to, to show that it is that easy to share your pictures online. The layout is a storyline between all of these commercials. It shows how these boys are sending pictures back and forth to show who has the better deal, or is having a better time than the other one.

Voice: There is little talking between both commercials, but it is just the boys normal everyday voice. At the end of the commercial they both say famous words that they usually say in all of their songs.

Extra Credit

Dear Editor,

My name is Elizabeth Jones and I have been working as a nanny for several years. I believe that kids need to be taught how to respect there parents and elders around them. Today parents are letting their kids get away with talking back and doing whatever they please. Some of the kids I have nannied recently are out of control the way they act towards their parents. Kids need discipline in order to become respectful young adults.

The problem with parents is that they let their kids boss them around and do what they please. Not disciplining our kids is turning them into rude, inconsiderate people. When they go out into the real world they believe they can still act this way. Disrespecting teachers and elders around them is not okay. Talking back and disrespecting is causing these kids to get intro trouble in other ways. The crime rate in our state has risen, and 23% of the kids from our county are in the CRJ. I have heard kids saying, "I'm 15 years old and you don't tell me what to do," and, "It's a matter of free speech." When I was younger my mother would never tolerate this.

I have helped the families I have nannied in getting their kids under control and being more respectful, but I cannot help everyone. Parents need to lay down the law on their kids. Give them chores, curfews, and make sure they are doing their homework before they go out. Setting rules like these will keep the kids in line and become more responsible. If all the parents begin to do this we will have a much friendlier community and I am almost positive crime and the kids in CRJ will descend.

Creative Practice

Pathos are an appeal to emotions.  Knowing the definition of pathos you can tell that the people that designed this ad were definitely thinking of pathos when they were making it. This whole ad is to make you feel bad for the handsome, sweet guy who cannot keep a girl because of his bad breath. The girls in the background are talking about how he will not even make it around the dance floor twice before the girl leaves him. Even the girl dancing with him in the picture has her head turned like she is already hating the dance, but the guy looks so happy that he finally got a girl to dance with him. Which makes you feel even worse because he looks so excited and the girl looks like she is about to walk away from him. This ad also uses pathos by asking are you guilty? It makes you feel like what if thats the reason I am not getting a date. You think I am good looking and attentive, maybe it is my bad breath. Then you will start to feel like you have halitosis and have to buy Listerine to get rid of it and save your dating life.

They have also used logos and ethos in this ad. They used only a little bit of ethos by saying that Listerine Antiseptic sweetens your breath and keeps it fresh for hours long instead of just minutes. Some other logos used in this ad were when they explained halitosis. They explained that the disease comes from a systematic disorder and that you yourself will not notice it but others around you will. They also definitely used ethos in this ad because they thought out the structure of the ad to make you feel like you could have this bad breath so you need to buy there product. I think that the copywriter chose these arguments in this order because it makes for an excellent ad. First you feel bad for the guy that cannot get a girl, and then they make you think what if you have halitosis? Lastly, they explain how this sweet tasting antiseptic can make all of you problems go away, provoking everyone to buy their product.

Commercials

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pm0RxTqj7ig&feature=related

Chapter Preview Questions

Specific strategies of argumentation that work as persuasion are cause and effect, example or illustration, and comparison-contrast.  Cause and effect demonstrates the benefits of using each product. The picture below shows an example of cause and effect. The ad is saying that without their phone your life will be chaos, but once you buy there phone you will be a much more organized person. An example or illustration shows how to use a certain product or how this product can change someones life. Lastly, comparison-contrast compares their product with someone else's product to show that theirs is better. 

Logos, pathos and ethos all play an important role in helping sell a product and keeping it popular. Without these rhetorical appeals the audience would not stay interested. The producers of every ad think of these three things carefully to make sure there ad is appealing to everyone. The best ads are a mix of all three things.  Logos is based on logic, statistical evidence, quotations from authorities, and proven facts. Pathos appeal to emotions. Adding emotion to ads really gets the point across. Seeing the effects of things in an emotional way will lead more people to believe it. Ethos appeals to character and authority. Aristotle states the ethos establish a goodwill or credibility of the writer. Almost everyone uses ethos. Ad artists construct their idea and then put it down on the paper while thinking about their word choice and tone. I think the picture below shows an excellent example of all three. It has a quote that persuades the audience, and the quote is an actual fact that can happen to real smokers. It also conveys ethos by feeling sorry for the man who has a hole in his throat. This ad also uses ethos because I'm sure the artist thought of this idea and found someone with this horrific problem to show how bad the effects of smoking are. 

Exaggerating logos causes the post hoc fallacy which confuses cause and effect, the cum hoc fallacy which interprets correlation as cause, the hasty generalization which draws conclusions too quickly without providing supporting evidence, the either or argument which reduces an argument between two choices ignoring other possibilities, stacking the evidence which offers evidence for only one side of the issue, begging the question which uses an argument as evidence for itself, or the red herring which distracts the audience rather than focusing on the argument itself. Exaggerating pathos can cause over-sentimentalization, the scare tactic, the false need, or the slippery slope fallacy. Over-sentimentalization distracts the audience from evidence or relevant issues causing a person to focus on just the picture and not the facts. The scare tactic scares the audience by picking out their worst fears to prove a point. The false need amplifies a perceived need or creates a completely new one. Lastly the slippery slope fallacy suggests that an event will send the audience down a slippery slope to a serious consequence. Exaggerating ethos causes parody. Which is when deliberately mocks a text or convention. For example, the new Kotex commercial which sells their product by making fun of other feminine product ads and saying that it shouldn't be so dramatic.

Considering the context in an argument makes sure that you are using it in the right time and place.  Thinking about what's going on in the world at that moment and using it in your ads will be a more persuasive argument. Audience, text, and context are the main things to out into an ad to make it persuasive. I can use all of these ideas in my own writing to make persuasive arguments. Just as they are persuasive with ads they are also persuasive in writings or television shows. Making sure I am using pathos, ethos, and logos and focusing on the context will make for an excellent paper. Also, using examples, comparing and contrasting, or using cause and effect will all make a paper have a stronger point and persuade my audience to believe my point. 

Political Cartoon

A Day in the Life of Me

My day started as usual, the most annoying alarm waking me up and interrupting my wonderful dreams.  I then continue to complain about waking up at 8am. I start my day with fresh breath.  Today, was the first time I realized I have a Colgate toothbrush, but I use Crest toothpaste... A little hypocritical. I then decided to make my self look a little bit presentable for class by fixing my hair and using Maybelline's new Falsies mascara (which works wonders if anyone was wondering).  Next time for the outfit, I choose to go with a Wild Wing Cafe t-shirt, blue shorts, and my Nike's of course. I grab a Kellogg's breakfast bar (less calories than the Reese's Puffs which I really wanted) and off to Child and Adolescent Psychology I go. 

Lil' Wayne, Drake, Nikki Minaj, Kanye West, and Trey Songz entertain me as I walk to class. I notice some chalking advertisements about OU Movies and Allen Student Help Center, but I don't really care for them.  I love looking at people's shoes because shoes are my obsession. If I had more money I would own every pair of Nike's there ever was. I saw a girl wearing the Nike's below and I loved them because they reminded me of the Flinestone's. When I got to Baker I noticed that it is full of ads. Latitude 39 advertising there delicious specials of the day, upcoming concerts and plays, and then you get to the bottom and there's people from Kegfly and Chase advertising what they have to offer.  Everywhere just money to spend on so many different things. 

After my psychology class I had some time to kill before my next class, so I went to the computer lab in Porter and I noticed a big banner that said "Now Accepting Psi Chi Applications."  This was probably the most persuasive ad I saw all day because I listened to that add and applied for Psi Chi.  On my way to my social work class I noticed a bunch of people wearing Kegfly shirts. My roommate is also a Kegfly girl so she warned me about it, but I didn't realize how much advertising they really were going to do. They're really doing there job also because I checked out their website today and they do got some pretty sweet deals on food, posters, and coffee. Making cheap college kids lives easier!

Later that day, I was watching TV with my roommate. We had seen previews for the World of Jenks on MTV and really wanted to watch it. Just our luck, two episodes in a row. My first time watching this show and I loved it. The first episode he lived with an autistic boy and his family. I worked with autistic kids this summer so it brought back all my memories with the kids I had. The show was awesome and I just wish I would have thought of the idea before he did. Of course, during the show there was the usual TV commercials. My favorites are always the Sonic commercials, they make me chuckle.

http://www.mtv.com/videos/?id=1645654

I couldn't figure out how to post this video, but here's a trailer of The World of Jenks.

And what a coincidence, you get to watch an ad before the trailer!

Before bed I always check the wonderful world of Facebook to see what's going on. The first ad that popped up was a Trojan Brand Condoms ad, and then an ad for the movie Letters to Juliet titled Love Romantic Movies? showed up. Obviously, Facebook knows my love life is a mess right now and just wanted to rub it in, but that's okay because thanks to People Magazine I know that Robert Pattinson is also going through a rough patch. Makes me feel a little better, even though I have never seen any of the Twilight movies and probably never will. 

What is Art?

Many people see art as a drawing, a painting, or a sculpture, but art is much more than that.  Art, to me, is anything that someone uses to express themselves visually.  In art, I feel that anything can be used as a canvas.  For example, the pair of shoes above, someone took a plain pair of sneakers and created them into a beautiful piece of artwork.  I think people use art to express certain behaviors or emotions that they are feeling while creating that piece of work.  If someone wants to create a picture about losing someone they love it would probably be made with dark colors to show the darkness that they are feeling.  Art is used around the world, and I think people use it as an escape.  Whenever they are feeling overwhelmed or stressed painting or drawing a picture to show what they are feeling or a place they wish they were can relieve that stress and put them in their own little world. 

Photographs are also something else that I consider artwork, and they are my personal favorite.  Pictures capture memories or can show you the beauty in nature, and they help you remember things for a lifetime.  All these beautiful pieces of artwork do come with a responsibility though.  To me being an artist comes with a number of responsibilities.  Once you make your biggest and best piece of work, or capture the most magnificent photograph, you have a responsibility to keep taking excellent photos and drawing beautiful pictures.  I also think that artists have a statement to make about the art, but I think that it is their responsibility not to offend anyone with their work.  Art gives people a responsibility to entertain people in a creative way with a dance, a sculpture, or even just graffiti written on the side of a train.

Art plays a hidden role all over the world.  Art is a great way for people to express themselves and get it shown to several people at one time. It can be used to symbolize almost anything.  For example the World War II memorial in Washington D.C. which salutes all the fallen soldiers.  People also do art projects all around the world just to get people's attention.  The picture below is in the city of Rotterdam where an artist put 45,000 stickers all throughout the city to tell people to stick together.  I was just in New York city over the summer and they were working on a project where they put black figures at the top of random buildings.  I'm not sure what the meaning of this project was, they said it was still a work in progress.  Art is also used in many houses as decoration for the walls because if your walls are bare, you are boring. Even the buildings around us are pieces of art that someone drew out, and then someone else put the drawing to life.  Art is all around us, whether you like it or not.