Blooming Flower

The building block activities in the first five weeks of the course allowed me to grow as a researcher and a writer. It was as if I was a little seedling and the assignments were my water and sunlight. I was given the right amount of nutrients to blossom which helped me write my Literature Review.

The first building block that was the most advantageous was annotating Carl Zimmer's TIME article "Friendships." This article is what initially made me want to focus my research on dog science. The reason for this is because he wrote that dogs are not ranked very high on the friendship scale since they do not show constant, reciprocal affection. I was completely shocked when I read this since I always thought my two dogs were my best friends. Due to my surprise, this article inspired me to dig deeper into the subject in order to learn more. It prepared me choose a specific type of species to research early on in the course as well as provided a framework of ideas I could reference when writing my essay.

Another building block that was essential for my growth was taking notes on TEDtalk video "The Secret Life of Dogs" by Julia Espinosa. This video was not only highly intriguing, but also guided me in my research process. This is due to the fact that it noted how dogs did not recognize themselves in the ordinary mirror self-recognition test, which focused mainly on sight. However, when the test was modified for dogs and instead focused on their strongest sense, smell, dogs showed great improvement and even displayed self-awareness as well as a theory of mind. As a result, this video was very helpful for my Literature Review since it made me want to discover a research article that discusses the olfactory mirror self-recognition test.

The final building block that ended up being very beneficial for the path I was taking in relation to dog intelligence was Alison Jolly's Literature Review "Conscious Chimpanzees?" on Connect. After annotating her article, I had a great idea of what my Literature Review should look like and convey. I even referenced her work many times when writing my Literature Review when I got stuck or was unsure on what to write next. It guided me in my writing process and also allowed me to write an intriguing essay about dog intelligence and a problem the species face.

Furthermore, I am uncertain and worried if I will meet the minimum requirements for the Literature Review since it is a huge part of my grade. Despite this, I am confident about some aspects of my work. This is because I believe I effectively met the objectives such as "Historical Dimensions" and "Arrangement, Organization." In terms of history, I began my introduction explaining how "most people believed they controlled all animals thinking they did not suffer or have much intelligence" until "advancements in animal behavior" occurred. I also organized my sources well by discussing the most important aspect first and then adding onto it with additional information from my other sources. However, one objective I am struggling with is the "Draft Length & Source Requirements." This is due to the fact that I find myself over the maximum word count and am having a hard time being concise. I have tried multiple times to delete unnecessary sentences, yet my problem has not disappeared.

In addition, I am leaning towards choosing dog euthanization as my issue for my Social Media Campaign. I might choose this problem since it is close to my heart due to the fact my sister and I used to volunteer our time for a no-kill shelter. I know that some people believe euthanizing “unwanted” dogs who were in a shelter for a long time saves them from an awful life filled only with loneliness and sorrow. However, Hope for Paws and NKLA: No Kill Los Angeles are two organizations that rescue dogs who were left to fend for themselves on the streets or in kill shelters as well as fight for dogs' rights. Their goal is to "educate people on the importance of companion animals in our society” and “stop the root of overpopulation in animal shelters and the resultant killing of animals." Since both organizations are dedicated to ending the euthanization of dogs, they work with many animal welfare groups, advocate for adoption, provide foster care, and supply spay and neuter services. Overall, their work ethic has paid off and successfully decreased the number of dogs killed in shelters. Their websites provide even more information about the negative effects of euthanization and solutions for this issue that I can't wait to further look into.

This was the shelter I volunteered at in my home town. My family also adopted our dog, Aspen, from here and he is a huge part of our family.