MbShea@PWP@English@UMCP

How is your recommendation memo going? Jane wants a coffee cup policy for the office that is "green."  OK, that is the content for your invention.  Here is preliminary arrangement (paragraphs, using stasis theory and cognitive wedge frames):

POLITE first person OPENING, with your recommendation that previews your final policy paragraph and is the CONJECTURE PARAGRAPH

Environmental problems (energy efficiency ->climate change AND persistance of plastic in ocean -> food chain disruption) YOU MUST IDENTIFY WHICH PROBLEM YOU WILL WEIGHT EARLY ON.

CONJECTURE -->DEFINITION (you reflect on the problem in our office with some reference to the larger problem)

Problem description (our office situation, with quantifiers) Coffee cup types (how many?  Can we do this in one comparison paragraph or do we need one per coffee cup type? Use counting technique of two or three)

DEFINITION-->CAUSE/EFFECT information  (LOTS GOING ON, here, but you note the limitations of the cups and their disposal:  recycling and land fill and "escape" into water environments)

STOP and PIVOT TOWARD THE ANALYSIS, by using A NEW DEFINITION PARA THAT DEFINES YOUR Decision criteria (HINT:  Life cycle analysis, and define this; use an EPA source) HERE, this definition helps us move to the VALUE paragraphs 

VALUE (you have a choice here, for order and emphasis; summarize their findings)

• Martin Hocking's work on life cycle analysis of paper v. styrofoam OR
• Charles Moore's work on size of ocean garbage patches

POLICY/ RECOMMENDATION (short as you can)

Re-invoke the Science/Research support (remind about Hocking or Moore evidence you discussed above in VALUING PARAGRAPHS)a Counter-argument and Qualification (concede reasonableness of the other position)

Sentences that can help you as topic sentences or transitions sentences between paragraphs

Any analysis of coffee cup choice requires use of life cycle analysis.

According to ........Life cycle analysis (LCA) assesses......

Life cycle analysis is the primary decision criteria I used in this memo to evaluate our coffee cup choice.

Note that Martin Hocking's work uses LCA to assess the energy intensivity of paper, styrofoam, and ceramic cups.

Life cycle analysis -- also known as cradle-to-grave -- helps capture the entire environmental effect from origin and inputs through use and, importantly, to disposal.

In my analysis, I weight [name environmental problem] more heavily than [the other problem].

Life cycle analysis can help us analyze this difficult question about coffee cup sustainability

We have two choices in coffee cups: paper or plastic (styrofoam).

Martin Hocking conducted the first -- and to date only -- peer-reviewed analysis of the energy embodied in coffee cup choices.

Charles Moore is among the first to alert us to the huge problem of persistent ocean plastic.

Now, on to Lesson on paragraphs: Coherence in a paragraph (sample content that you can use or work from):

"Meh" paragraph
Plastic and paper cups pose problems for recycling. Ceramic cups are very energy intensive to produce. Recycling seems environmentally-sound.  Paper does not degrade deep within most landfills and the plastic coating is also difficult.  Not all plastic can be recycled.  You need to check the bottom of the container.  Landfills are increasingly full.  There is a huge "patch of garbage in the Pacific Ocean.

Better paragraph
Paper and plastic both pose disposal problems.  First, not all plastic can be recycled. Check the bottom of the plastic container. "No. 1" and "No. 2" types can be recycled by most facilities. Second, paper does not degrade deep within most landfills because of low oxygen conditions. The plastic coating also interferes with decay. Landfills are increasingly full.  There is a huge "patch" of garbage in the Pacific Ocean.

Even better paragraph (can you see the re-thinking of content as well as sentence-level revision)
Paper and plastic both pose disposal problems.  First, not all plastic can be recycled. Check the bottom of the plastic container. "No. 1" and "No. 2" types can be recycled by most facilities. Second, paper does not degrade deep within most landfills because of low oxygen conditions. The plastic coating also interferes with decay. Landfills are increasingly full, with paper and plastic part of the waste stream. Not all plastic is recycled or landfilled. According to the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) a huge patch of plastic garbage in the Pacific Ocean is further evidence of of the environmental harm posed by plastic (NRDC, 2011)

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DUE DATES:

You will be rewriting the rain garden memo for a grade, to be due on Monday.  Coffee cup memo also due on Monday FOR PEER REVIEW. Final version due on Wednesday.

I want to chat about some grammar/convention items:

that v.who (things v. people)

punctuation with quotation marks, the US convention

APA: author date conventions, including institutional author

More -- we will talk about these items more fully on Wednesday

Semicolons by "The Oatmeal."

Apostrophe by the same; apostrophe by "Bob, the angry flower."

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