Plastic has always been a main concern in landfills and only recently has public attention been turned to its effects on ocean environments. One widely spread image is that of an unknowing sea creature snagged in the plastic waste of our cast offs. Previously it was thought that this was the extent of plastic’s effect on ocean ecosystems. However now scientists turn their concerns towards the masticated plastic debris trapped in the ocean gyres, plastic particles that are small enough to affect the lowest chains of food. This is the focus of the article “Great Pacific Garbage Patch Swells” by Michelle Rindels.
“Seeing that influence just floating out here in the middle of nowhere makes our power painfully obvious, and the consequences of the industrial age plain” (Goldstein 2009). This statement quoted by the associated press encompasses many environmentalists’ views on plastic debris in the ocean environment. The quote comes from Miriam Goldstein who headed an expedition to document the stretch of garbage found in the north Pacific.
I believe that Goldstein meant a number of things when she stated that “our power is painfully obvious.” From a negative standpoint it could point the finger at present human society, the flaws and weaknesses in our carelessness. That maybe we have too much control and too little understanding of the way the world actually functions.
However I lean towards it meaning that since we wield such a strong influence we should be able to correct our mistakes fairly simply. Goldstein could mean that it is “painfully obvious” what we should do with our power instead of just stating we have too much. She calls it an “influence” which can be taken as our impact, however an influence is only the capacity to have effect and not the effect itself.
Goldstein also comments on the industrial age in the quote. From an initial reading it is fairly obvious she is speaking about the environmental impact and not any social or economic. However what people forget is that the environmental consequences can quickly bleed over into our everyday lives. Therefore from a conceptual analysis standpoint we can quickly see that the negative impacts of ocean pollution would parallel the negative impacts felt by ocean based industries as well as the consumer health of products drawn from the sea.
Resources:
Rindels, Michelle. Great Pacific Garbage Patch Swells. Associated Press. August 28, 2009. Accessed October 22, 2009 from http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2009/08/28/pacific-garbage.html
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I was excited when I discovered the topic of your blog this week because I have read several articles that concern the amount of plastic that is building up in the Pacific Ocean. I appreciated how your introduction was thorough enough to explain the situation yet concise in the sense that you said a lot in a fairly small amount of words. I like how you mentioned two different interpretations of your chosen statement but identified which one you think the other author actually meant. My suggestion would be to end your blog with a short paragraph that summarizes your thoughts on conceptual analysis. I think it would be an effective way to sum up your thoughts.
ReplyDeleteI really liked how well you explained the topic of plastic waste in the ocean, because I did not think that it was too wordy, but you thorougly explained the present situation and the problems associated with plastic in the oceans. I agree with how you described conceptual analysis in this case and i agree that the sentence is ambiguous. Maybe you could have explained whether conceptual analyis is a good thing or a bad thing in terms of environmental issues and it would have been easier to understand in this situation. Overall I think that you did a really good job on this week's blog.
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