We're baaaaaack!

So summer is still here but we are back in school anyway. If you live in or near Anchorage we also have the State Fair in Palmer coming soon which always seems to have the same fall/ windy / rainy weather each year. But so far I got to go on a walking tour of the main UAA campus with a group of students getting their official welcome to UAA tour. Then today I got to meet a room full - mostly returning students who know me - to give a presentation on professionalism. Yes! Moi! But so if you are interested some links I used included my page on plagiarism with a focus on two sites - the dialectizer - and the postmodern generator. My main point included realizing we have different vocabularies that are appropriate in different contexts and professionalism entails recognizing the context and speaking fluently in the vocabulary of that context without using vocabulary that is not considered appropriate to that context. And the most important skill we pick up is how to use the correct process and apply it to the database of information relevant to that context. So, learn how to do research papers and use the appropriate tools the correct ways - and voila - you have success! Notice from one context to another these tools may change. A second source I used to make these points included Robing Williams explaining the invention of golf. We talked about why his use of power words was obviously appropriate in that context but why the same expressions and style would be inappropriate in others. The second example of this was George Carlin talking about the seven words you can't use on TV. What an incredibly appropriate resource for talking about professionalism! Thanks George. Well, welcome back everyone.