Claire Byrnes

Pahomov

English 3

May 1, 2017

Cat Videos On The Internet Are Purr-fect

4,000 years ago, the first cats were domesticated by the Ancient Egyptians who used domesticated cats to catch vermin. Now, cats have transcended this simple task by becoming internet sensations such as: Lil Bub, Grumpy Cat, Nyan Cat, Maru, and Lolcats. Domestic cats are some of the most viewed content on the web and have attracted the attention of scholars who strive to analyze why this form of art becomes iconic and psychologists who research the positive effects of cat videos. Research has shown that watching cat videos not only helps viewers regulate their emotions, but it also allows the viewers to imagine a world where they are not constantly surveillanced.

Cat videos are associated with procrastination and are cited as a guilty pleasure but those derogatory titles may not hold true. Jessica Gall Myrick, media scholar at Indiana University, surveyed nearly 7,000 internet users to explore how emotions are affected by the viewing of internet cats. Her results, shown in the bar chart below, support the idea that “happiness gained from viewing Internet cats can moderate the relationship between procrastination motives, guilt, and enjoyment.”

Cat videos have been proven to cause positive feelings but their effect on behavior has not been fully researched, until now. A Japanese study led by four scientists examined the effect of cute images on various tasks such as “fine motor dexterity” tasks. University students were asked to perform various tasks after viewing cute images. For all trials, viewing cute images narrowed the focus of the participants, allowing their performance on the tasks to improve.

Cat videos have been proven multiple times to be a rewarding experience for the viewers’ brains that increases effectiveness for tasks. Another topic of research is cats’ indifference to filming, since from the FBI to the Department of Homeland Security to the Defense Department, various surveillance programs have been implemented by the government to watch what citizens do online. For example, the Department of Homeland Security tracks approximately 380 keywords organized into categories such as cyber security or emergencies and weather or terrorism. There are many psychological risks of mass surveillance – under certain conditions, constant surveillance can encourage social conformity, promote distrust and increase mental strain and stress. The positive effects of cat videos (providing a dopamine boost and keeping negative emotions in check) can combat the negative effects of constant surveillance.

A researcher at Massey University in New Zealand analyzed cat videos and found that the cat videos popular on the internet tend to have a few key characteristics. “They are generated by users, shot on a mobile device such as a phone, and set in a domestic environment.” These characteristics set up the viewers as “observers” to the cat’s actions with the cats being indifferent to the filming. The cats are oblivious to the camera which contrasts against other online videos. When dogs are filmed, they make eye contact with the camera and understand, to some extent, that they are being watched. “The cats’ apparent uninhibited behavior gives the viewer the illusion of voyeuristically catching a glimpse of a self-sufficient world. This lack of self-consciousness and sense of authenticity are key to their reception as ‘cute’ videos.”

When asked, internet users might say that cat videos are merely for entertainment, but on closer inspection, they not only regulate viewers negative emotions, but also combat the stress of constant surveillance. Surveillance programs sponsored by the government to watch citizens’ internet usage places strain on them. Cat videos are the purr-fect combatant for whenever a dopamine rush is wanted.

This is my best possible 2fer because I edited my thesis statement throughout my writing process. A few times, I found a very interesting study that I knew I had to include after tweaking my thesis. In other 2fers, I researched information that would just prove my existent thesis which didn't allow me to use other arguments that were still applicable to my topic. My flexibility during this 2fer allowed my argument to be changed depending on my research and made my essay more well-rounded.

Works Cited

Baer, Drake. "Here's the surprising psychological reason the Internet loves cat videos."
Business Insider. Business Insider, 17 June 2015. Web. 30 April 2017.
<http://www.businessinsider.com/psychology-of-cat-videos-study-2015-6>.

"Cats’ indifference a crowd-pleaser." Cats' indifference a crowd-pleaser - Massey University.
Massey University New Zealand, n.d. Web. 30 Apr. 2017. <http://www.massey.ac.nz
/masseyabout-massey/news/article.cfm?mnarticle_uuid=E50983B4-920A-0C58-CB7B
-0DCD96B677DB>.

Chambers, Chris. "NSA and GCHQ: the flawed psychology of government mass surveillance |
Chris Chambers." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 26 Aug. 2013. Web. 30 Apr.
2017. <https://www.theguardian.com/science/head-quarters/2013/aug/26/nsa-gchq-
psychology-government-mass-surveillance>.

Kounang, Nadia. "Watching cute cat videos is instinctual and good for you." CNN. Cable
News Network, 20 Jan. 2016. Web. 30 Apr. 2017. <http://www.cnn.com/2016/01
/20/health/your-brain-on-cute/>.

Myrick, Jessica Gall. "Emotion regulation, procrastination, and watching cat videos online:
Who watches Internet cats, why, and to what effect?" Science Direct. Elsevier Ltd, n.d.
Web. 30 April 2017. <http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii
/S0747563215004343#>.

Nittono, Hiroshi, Michiko Fukushima, Akihiro Yano, and Hiroki Moriya. "The Power of Kawaii:
Viewing Cute Images Promotes a Careful Behavior and Narrows Attentional Focus."
PLOS ONE. Public Library of Science, 26 Sept. 2012. Web. 30 Apr. 2017.
<http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0046362>.

O'Meara, Radha. "Do Cats Know They Rule YouTube? Surveillance and the Pleasures of Cat Videos." M/C Journal. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Apr. 2017. <http://journal.media-culture.org.au/ index.php/mcjournal/article/viewArticle/794>.

In “Taming of the Shrew”, deception in a relationship is used to woo a love interest when Lucentio disguises himself as a teacher to have access to the love of his life - Bianca. In Amélie (2001), the main character uses stratagems to hide her identity while moving her crush around like a chess piece.

Although Lucentio and Amélie both trick their love interests to win them over, Lucentio reveals his identity to Bianca right away while Amélie keeps her identity hidden from Nino. In the end, Lucentio and Amélie’s deceit pay off for the partners since Bianca and Nino are gifted with their heart’s desire. These pieces of media show that deception in relationships continue to provide the opportunity for one person to have power over the other in any relationship. The deception can seem wrong at first, but as long as the power is being used for working towards the betterment of the relationship, all turns out well.

“… this young scholar Гpresenting Lucentio, disguised as Cambioㄱ that hath been long studying at Rheims, as cunning in Greek, Latin, and other languages as the other in music and mathematics. His name is Cambio. Pray accept his service.”

(Act 2, Scene 1, 83-88)

Lucentio disguises himself as Cambio, a teacher, to be able to get close to Bianca, since her father, Baptista, is not allowing her to get married until her older sister, Katherine, does. Gremio, another of Bianca’s suitors, introduces him to Bianca and her family. This deception sets Lucentio up to interact with Bianca without her knowing his true identity. Lucentio has control over Bianca’s interpretation of him, giving him power. Instead of harming Bianca, Lucentio reveals his true identity to her, strengthening their blooming relationship.

Amélie is reluctant to reveal her true identity since she is not as confident as Lucentio.

In “Amélie”, Nino is positive that he has found the mysterious woman that led him to this cafe. Amélie denies her identity and retreats, leaving Nino disappointed but still intrigued. In this scene, Amélie has lost her mystery and her power, leaving her face to face to the man that she wants to impress. Unlike Lucentio, Amélie is shy and not confident that she will be able to win Nino’s affection right away. In an attempt to regain power, Amélie continues her deception to keep herself hidden away from the possibility of a rejection. Nino could have forced Amélie to reveal herself, making her uncomfortable, but he allowed her to stay in the dark. While Amélie’s denial is disappointing to Nino, it pushes him to become more passionate in his search for her, keeping their relationship playful.

Enter Katherine and Bianca Гwith her hands tied.ㄱ

“Good sister, wrong me not, nor wrong yourself, to make a bondmaid and a slave of me…. Unbind my hands…”

(Act 2, Scene 1, 1-4)

This quote shows that Katherine and Bianca are struggling to stay civil with each other since Bianca cannot be married until her sister does. This tension between siblings most likely results in her not enjoying being forced to stay at home. Her haste to get married supports the idea that she wishes to be freed and move on with her life before she is considered to be an “unmarriageable age”. Lucentio uses his disguise as an opportunity to win Bianca’s love and therefore, provide her with a way to get married.

While Amélie’s identity is still a secret to Nino, they play a game of cat-and-mouse, with her leading Nino to specific locations. The first location is to binoculars (shown in the first image below) and the second location is a photo booth (the second image below).

Amélie uses arrows to guide Nino through the city to return his prized album back to him. He is guided to binoculars so that when he looks in them, he can see Amélie returning the album to his bike… and then running away. Amélie also shows Nino the secret of the photo booth repairman that causes him to be dumbstruck, since he believed the man to be a ghost. Amélie still does not reveal herself, which is different from “Taming of the Shrew”. If Amélie revealed herself after returning the album or amazing Nino with the repairman, the moment would have been equivalent to Lucentio revealing himself and gifting Bianca with the chance for her freedom. All of these gifts were given to the love interests through deception, but that dishonesty did not stop the amazement that Nino felt and Bianca’s amusement at Lucentio revealing his true identity.

In “Amélie” and “Taming of the Shrew”, both suitors use deception to gain power. Lucentio and Amélie’s dishonesty with their partners is glossed over because in the end, their relationships have improved. This proves that society places focus on the result of the relationship, not the developing process. Lucentio went around Bianca’s back to arrange their marriage, but they make a fine couple in the end. Amélie manipulated Nino but in the end, they are riding on a bicycle and smiling.

Works Cited

Amélie. Dir. Jean-Pierre Jeunet. Perf. Audrey Tautou and Mathieu Kassovitz. Twentieth

Century Fox Home Entertainment, 2001. DVD.

Shakespeare, William. The taming of the shrew. Ed. G. R. Hibbard and Margaret Jane

The Sound of Growth

Freshman Year

The wind whips my hair, stinging my eyes that are rolling at my lack of sleep. My viola hangs haphazardly on my shoulder weighing my body down and bringing an ominous soreness to my back. I glide through the glass door after a cellist whose instrument is decorated with cool bumper stickers. One of the stickers is Olaf from Let It Go and I could swear that he winks at me.

The woman at the front desk smiles at me and I try to smile back but I imagine it looks more like a wince. The turnstile bangs against my legs and shuts as I try, and fail, to follow the cellist’s movements into the building. Right ahead of me, a wooden panelled room is packed with lingering teenagers and instruments. I assume this room is my destination. In a few minutes, my viola is in my hands and I am nervously plucking a mindless tune, eyes searching for a friendly face. I sigh, longing for my bed and a few more hours of warm sleep.

We are herded upstairs and before me, a room opens up, stuffed with young musicians banging away on their instruments. Everyone is in their own little world, their eyebrows bunched together in focus, bodies creating spheres of musical colors. I am amazed and intimidated. I can feel the intense passion these people have for their craft and know that, while I do find music enjoyable, I rarely feel so enthusiastic.

When I reach my section, I am self-preservative about choosing my seat, making sure that I’m not right next to the booming horns. My seat is in the middle of the section, close enough to the front so that someone could hear my mishaps, but far enough away so that I have trouble hearing the conductor who looms before us on a platform. He is unrecognizable to me, as are most of the musicians in the room. I will eventually spend tedious and thrilling hours of rehearsal with these strangers.

My standmate is abrupt. He wants to focus on the music entirely and I am a distraction. He looks older than me, everyone does, but I can’t tell if he is in college or high school. I can see that he is sizing me up, hoping that I won’t elbow him in the face or knock over the stand. I soften him up with some pretty impressive small talk for someone who didn’t have any caffeine. My skilled page turning is appreciated, but I don’t dare ask questions, knowing that I am expected to know what col legno means. This rehearsal is a mess of contradictory expectations: I am supposed to play fluidly right away but I have never played a piece this complicated. What does the instruction col legno mean, anyways? (Col legno battuto is Italian for “hit with the wood” of your bow.)

The music notes are a scribble of marks on the paper, a language whose words I can understand separately but can’t string together into paragraphs. Only halfway through the first piece and I am a mess - hands shaking, tears pricking my eyes, heart beating as fast as a stallion’s gallop. This music is like nothing I've seen before; it's Philadelphia Orchestra worthy, can I learn to play this?

Sophomore Year

We are crammed in the room, giving us just enough bow room and just enough heat for us to want to yank off our jackets. It’s impressive that the cavernous room could be filled with people and sound. The banging of the percussion and tooting of the winds pounds on my ears, blocking me from hearing my own instrument. I'm used to trusting my fingers so it doesn't startle me as much as it did last year.

The music notes are a scribbling mess, a language whose words I can understand but can’t pronounce. I take deep breaths to calm my sweaty palms and remind myself how far I had come in a year. And I perfected that Stamitz concerto, didn't I?

The music coaches stand around the perimeter of the room, providing feedback when needed but mainly observing. I can feel their undying support and know we are expected to love music half as much as they do. The symphony finishes and all the string-players flourish their ending notes, with the bows raised in the hand. I laugh to myself - such drama queens. Did you know that when we’re rehearsing and someone plays their solo beautifully, all of the string players stop to wag their bows in the air? Can you imagine how ridiculous we all look? 100 students, shaking their bows in unison to “applaud” someone’s success? I admire the relatively new conductor, whose easy smiles and laughter ease my nerves, and I manage to not get lost in the symphony music or my nervousness.

Junior Year

Even though my feet are enveloped by socks, they are numb from the cold seeping from the wooden floor. I wiggle my toes as my teacher flies her fingers across her instrument, playing our next passage in Symphonie Fantastique. I nod and set my jaw, allowing my eyes to transcribe the music notes in movements for my hands.

My teacher lifts up her viola to cue me and we play the measure in a loop, over and over. After the fifth round, I could feel myself tiring and overthinking my fingers. After pausing, I put a star next to the measure, signifying it as a spot I would have to practice at home. My teacher nods and wishes me good luck for my first rehearsal. I thank her, thinking to myself: I’ll need it.

Truthfully, I was more prepared for this rehearsal than my two other experiences. I had looked over the music for starters, had listened to the complicated rhythms and eyed the syncopated sections, highlighting them with yellow sticky notes. I knew the entire viola section vaguely and had friends that I could laugh and relax with. The coaches were friendly with me the only difficulty was coping with their oppressive expectations.

In “The Yellow Birds”, the main character, Bartle, returns home after serving in the Iraq War. He returns to his family and friends who expect him to be unchanged and mentally sound. Bartle cannot meet either of these expectations and feels a disconnect between himself and the people he loved before the war. In my music community, I am expected to become a musician. In classical music, it is normal for successful musicians to dedicate their entire lives to music, especially since most musicians begin their careers young.

The idea that I had been playing an instrument since second grade, was involved in different orchestras and took private lessons, was the minimum for most of my friends. The Philadelphia All City Orchestra is considered prestigious - the finest student musicians in Philadelphia. The majority of the students arrived early, took pride in their seating and were involved in musical competitions that earned them scholarships, but also popularity.

My music teachers held me to the popular expectation of a professional music career path. Some teachers don’t fully understand that I am included in multiple extra curriculars and have not committed to one activity that prepares me for a career. Rather than one passionate hobby, I am spread across multiple pastimes not intensively.

Like Bartle in “The Yellow Birds”, I have to face my mentors’ expectations and be clear on what I want for my life. Interestingly, I have found that most of my teachers understand or at least accept my decision, as long as I stay diligent in my practicing. Not fulfilling other’s expectations and not conforming to my friends’ paths can be difficult, but I remind myself of the joy my varied interests bring me. Bartle and I fight internal and external battles that may make us feel lonely or different, but staying true to our complex selves provides a satisfactory reward.

The Extrovert Ideal

Albert Einstein, Rosa Parks, Steven Spielberg, Sir Isaac Newton, and Eleanor Roosevelt have been some of the most influential people in society. They are also all documented introverts. Sadly, these people are seen as the exception, as being among a few introverts who have become successful. According to societal stereotypes, a leader must be confident, not reserved; commanding, not quiet. In most cases, the world revolves around the extrovert, which in turn forces introverts to either conform or to cope in their own ways.

The main difference between introverts and extroverts is how they relax and recharge after a long day. There are many stereotypes surrounding introverts and extroverts; the main assumptions here are that all introverts are shy and all extroverts are outgoing. According to Saul McLeod, a psychology lecturer, the psychiatrist Carl Jung decided that extroverts have an “outward flowing of personal energy” while introverts have an “inward flowing of personal energy”. Jung also bluntly points out that “Our Western attitude is extroverted; value is put on being outgoing which we consider being well adjusted.” During the Industrial Revolution, Americans started to not only sell their product, but also themselves. An important part of business and eventually success, was to put on a confident, extroverted persona. Powerful leaders in business and other work fields had to be sure of themselves and forthright with their ideas - being reserved and reflective are considered weak attributes. Extroverts are seen as ideal in the workplace possibly because introverts can get overlooked, tend to be less driven by monetary gain and find self-promoting ‘distasteful’. Extroverts are also more likely to take on higher paying management roles resulting in the extroverted personality types earning more money, as shown in the “Average Household Income by Type” graph (Share):

The Extrovert Ideal is a phrase that describes the way that society rewards those with extroverted tendencies and leadership. In Susan Cain’s words from her book Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking, “We live with a value system that I call the Extrovert Ideal—the omnipresent belief that the ideal self is gregarious, alpha, and comfortable in the spotlight...” The Extrovert Ideal is supported by many scenarios, one of which is the way that office spaces are organized. Many office spaces are open spaces, allowing collaboration and the sharing of ideas. For some work fields, such as education or small businesses, collaboration is extremely useful; instead of one mind there could be five people pouring over one problem. Many people think this way of working is essential, but it is wrong to assume that everyone holds it to that same standard. Introvert blogger, Matt Blodgett said, “By forcing your whole team into an open plan, you are effectively telling your introverts, act like an extrovert! All the time! If you don’t like this, there’s something wrong with you!” While extraversion is an attractive personality to most people, modern workplace culture made it into an oppressive lifestyle so that many introverts feel they need to conform. Society is built in favor of the extroverted. Introverts should not be forced to change their lifestyle based off of their office space and coworkers and should not be shunned because they work a different way.

Introverts may not be able to change the way that they recharge, but they can adapt and find ways to cope with the Extrovert Ideal. Laura Vanderkam has developed strategies to be confident while giving speeches to large groups of people. As an introvert, Vanderkam has had to cope with the expectation of being instantly skilled with public speaking. Vanderkam has not become an extrovert - she still struggles with her speeches and needs time to herself to recharge - but she has found ways to make the lecturing process easier for her through strategies to make public speaking more comfortable for her. For example, Vanderkam says that she has “the organizers [of where I am lecturing] put me in touch with a few audience members beforehand... When I say hello before the talk, they become friendly faces, nodding and smiling in seats near the front [of the audience].” By practicing and tweaking her public speaking technique, Vanderkam has found ways to make her more comfortable with something that an extrovert could attempt without hours of preparation. A stereotype is that all introverts, being shy, are terrible at public speaking. Vanderkam proves this stereotype wrong and defends introverts’ personalities, but since the world expects the ideal person to be an extrovert, introverts must find ways to cope.

Although the Extrovert Ideal may only seem important to introverts, it should in fact concern anyone who cares about how the world treats those who function differently. Society should accept introverts and extroverts for who they are. As attractive of a trait that extroversion is, it should not be an oppressive standard. If no space is made for introverts, then society will lose people who crave solitude that gives them time to formulate ideas without distraction, people who rely on their inner compasses, not external affirmation, and realistic listeners would can shape the world with the passion and strength.

Works Cited:

1. Jung, Carl. "Jung's Theory of Temperaments." Philosophy Lander. Philosophy Lander, Web. 15 Oct. 2016. <http://philosophy.lander.edu/ethics/jung.html>.

2. Blodgett, Matt. "The Open Plan Office and the Extrovert Ideal." Blodgett, Matt. Matt Blodgett, 2016. Web. 15 Oct. 2016. <http://www.mattblodgett.com/2015/02/the-open-plan-office-and-extrovert-ideal.html>.

3. Vanderkam, Laura. "The Introvert on the Podium." The New York Times. The New York Times. Web. 15 Oct. 2016. <http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/23/business/the-introvert-on-the-podium.html?_r=1>.

4. Cain, Susan. Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking. New York: Broadway Paperbacks, 2012, 2013. Print.

5. Share, Jacob. "Do You Have This Moneymaking Personality Trait?" JobMob. JobMob, n.d. Web. 01 Nov. 2016. <https://jobmob.co.il/blog/personality-trait-making-money/>.

6. Lebowitz, Shana. "Why Extroverts Earn More Money than Introverts." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 12 May 2015. Web. 01 Nov. 2016. <http://www.businessinsider.com/susan-cain-on-why-extroverts-earn-more-2015-5>.

7. Bernstein, Elizabeth. "Why Introverts Make Great Entrepreneurs." The Wall Street Journal. WSJ, 23 Aug. 2015. Web. 01 Nov. 2016. <http://www.wsj.com/articles/why-introverts-make-great-entrepreneurs-1440381699>.

This is what your internet will be without net neutrality:

Net neutrality is when all data on the internet is treated equally. This means that all Internet Service Providers (ISP) and the government treat everything on the internet the same by not discriminating or charging differently by user, content, site, etc. This is important for everyone to have the same access to knowledge. Some people see net neutrality as an important part of an open internet.  A “closed internet” is the opposite situation, when there is restricted access to different resources in the Internet.

I argue in favor of net neutrality. If we did not have net neutrality then we will have to pay more to have faster internet. This means that those who have fewer financial resources will not be able to access the internet if net neutrality does not exist. An open internet increases creativity and allows people to share their ideas with the world. In other words, “diffusion of innovation” will decrease with no net neutrality. Discrimination on the internet might increase inequality in the physical world.

I feel confused and disappointed that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) cannot stop digital discrimination and ensure network neutrality.  Therefore, those who have more money will receive more benefits and have access to resources that the overall public cannot. Equal data does not hurt anyone because everyone will have the same access for the internet. When equal internet service providers do not want net neutrality it will hurt others by having to pay more. We say this because if the all internet service providers that suddenly started to be equal they will lose money.

Sources:

1. "Net Neutrality." A Guide to Net Neutrality for Google Users. Google, n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2014. <http://web.archive.org/web/20080901084929/http://www.google.com/help/netneutrality.html>.

2. "What Is Net Neutrality?." American Civil Liberties Union. american civil liberties union, n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2014. <https://www.aclu.org/net-neutrality>.

3. "Net Neutrality FAQ | SaveOurNet." OpenMedia.ca. n.p., n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2014. <https://openmedia.ca/saveournet/faq>.

I made all of my text in sans-serif because I found that sans-serif looks better on the web while serif is easier to read in printed works. Keeping that in mind, I made the quote marks and coma more curved to contrast against the quote which is still in sans-serif, but seems sharper. I also changed the typeface of “Hans Christian Andersen” so that it was not the same typeface as the quote.

When discussing different fonts such as sans-serif and serif I used this website:

http://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2013/03/serif-vs-sans-the-final-battle/