Response

Writing, even at the college level, isn’t just an opportunity to show audiences that you know something or that you’re willing to argue something.  Sometimes, writing is a way of demonstrating that you want to know more about something, that you’re seeking answers.  In short, sometimes writing is a way of inquiry.

This spirit of inquiry is key to discovery.  Wondering why things happen or why things are the way they are is something we were well-versed in as children.  We asked “Why is the sky blue?” “Why do dogs pant?” “Where does the wind come from?” and “Why are there ten hot dogs but only eight buns?”  At some point, however, we lost that spirit of inquiry.  We stopped asking and merely accepted the world as we saw it.

Writing, however, allows us to reclaim that activity.  Writing allows us to re-sharpen that spirit that has grown dull with disuse and age.

For this activity I want you to practice that spirit of inquiry with this question: Can everyone who eats beef, eat grass-fed beef?

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Imagine you’re early in your research and writing process.  You haven’t done much reading on the topic, though the idea of sustainable agriculture, especially as it relates to livestock, is something that interests you.  The question above, for whatever reason, is one that intrigues you.

Watch the TEDx talk, “Cows, Carbon, and Climate,” featuring Joel Salatin, an organic farmer.  How does Salatin’s presentation answer or complicate this question?  How do you think he might answer this question?

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Response Details:

             1.         Using the TEDx talk as your primary resource, write a 300+ word response that attempts to answer the question above.

             2.         You must use direct quotation from the presentation at least once in your response.

             3.         Your response must also contain a proper APA citation of the presentation.

Cows, Carbon and Climate | Joel Salatin | TEDxCharlottesville(YouTube)