Phase 6 - Response

This article does a great job of summarizing how fast food and healthy food differ. They mention the reasons why fast food is popular and also why healthy food is unpopular. The biggest reason is that fast food is accessible and healthy food isn't. Simple but it is a true statement. The author also pulls out the strengths of the healthy food and the weaknesses of fast food. Most of the strengths and weaknesses came with calories and nutrients for each food. The major factor in all of this is if the food is close by and cheap. Americans do not care if they get long term problems from their food, they just want it quick and cheap.

Phase 6 - Summary

Everyone thinks that fast food does not have a chance whenever it is compared to fresh vegetables or other healthy foods. Sadly, the healthy food that is available in the US is not very easily accessible and it requires more work to get it. The healthy foods provide all the necessary nutritions but at the same time your wallet may suffer. The fast food industry on the other hand is thriving and very easy to access. The food is cheap and always available wherever you are. Fast food is also packed with calories. You could eat the same amount of food from each type and get many more nutrients out of the healthy food and also get almost double the amount of calories from the fast food without the nutrients. Fast food places are trying to offer healthy options for their food but everyone stereotypes them as unhealthy so when they go to a place like McDonalds,they expect to get the unhealthy food anyways.

Phase 6 - Credibility

The source that I chose for this phase is, Livestrong. My article title is, Health Food Vs. Fast Food.
http://www.livestrong.com/article/410704-health-food-vs-fast-food/
http://www.livestrong.com

The source is relevant to my topic. This information relates to my topic because it combine the fast food industry with obesity and it also brings the argument of healthy food into the discussion as well. The intended audience is anyone who is looking to stay in shape. I would be comfortable citing this in a paper due the strength of the writer. The authority of this article is strong as well. The author writes specifically on fast food, nutrition, and obesity. She has a masters and a bachelors in journaling. The author has strong qualifications to write about this topic. I feel the accuracy of this article is also strong. The information for the article comes from multiple sources and over half of them are from research sources. The only issues that I have with the accuracy is that there is no proof that the information is confirmed and also the website uses ads within the pages, that can be a turn off but all of the ads are for health related things which can help some of the people using the page.

Phase 5

Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA75496663&v=2.1&u=lanc44417&it=r&p=LitRC&sw=w
http://go.galegroup.com
http://ehis.ebscohost.com/eds/detail?sid=d7b003e6-2fff-467f-8ff4-783414953a61%40sessionmgr11&vid=1&hid=3&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWRzLWxpdmUmc2NvcGU9c2l0ZQ%3d%3d#db=ofs&AN=503793397

This source is reliable for multiple reasons. The authority of this article is not perfect but it is good. The article was written as book review for the book, "Fast Food Nation." This means that there is a third party between the book and the reader but it is still a strong article. The author is the associate editor for the New York Press. This article also is also from the American Scholar center. The purpose for this article is very clear. The goal is to inform the reader about the book that is being reviewed. This information is fact and it has a minor influence of the author but most articles will have a minor amount of that within it. This information is also accurate according to the book. The information comes from a book that was highly known for the fast food industry. The article as stated before has minor influence from the author but at the same time the book has the major influence within the article.

This source is helpful for my topic because I need to know specifically about the fast food industry and how they work before I can judge the industry and see it from both perspectives. The fast food industry may or may not be the cause for obesity but at the same time they may be the cause for other illness and pain.

This article points out some of the key features of the book and whenever there is a strong fact within the book then the article pulls that out as well. Some of the information of this article is very moving and it makes people wonder wether or the not fast food industry really shows the honest truth in their ads and in their stores. I enjoy how the author makes the point how the industry was not born into this format but it was transformed into it later on in the career. I also feel like the book in general smacks the fast food industry with a hand that may not have been needed. While people know that industry food in unhealthy and it is not the best meat, the statements made, make it feel as if the food is dangerous. At the same time, if the food was dangerous it would not pass the tests that it needs to pass to be served in the US.


SLIVKA, ANDREY. "FAST FOOD NATION: THE DARK SIDE OF THE ALL-AMERICAN MEAL." American Scholar 70.2 (2001): 152. Literature Resource Center. Web. 24 Sep. 2012.

Phase 4

The article title is, "Do Fast Food Restaurants Contribute to Obesity?"

http://www.nber.org/bah/2009no1/w14721.html

http://www.nber.org/

This article does not have an author that is listed or a date that it was published. This will hurt it's score for authority. The authority level does increase drastically when you look at the affiliation that the article is published with. The National Bureau of Economic Research is a very reliable source. The dates of the studies within this article are also up to date which helps me rest a sure that the article is current. I would rate this a 7 for authority. I would also rate it an 8 for accuracy because of the amount of research within the article. This article has a few flaws when it comes to accuracy but when you look at the whole picture of the article you know that it is accurate. The currency of this article could be questioned but if you read into it you will notice that the stats are up to date. I will give this an 8 as well for the currency do to the information with the text. Overall this is a good article and I would certainly use it. 

I feel that this article will help with my blog because it gives the data that I need to look at when it comes to students and fast food. This article helps me visualize the amount of influence distance to a fast food restaurant will impact peoples lives.

The rate of obesity has increased by major amounts in the past 30 years. The number of fast food restaurants has also doubled over the past 30 years. Research has been done towards the distance of a fast food restaurant and a school. The distance of 0.10 shows a five percent increase in body weight but a distance of 0.25 or more shows no effect. The women in this study have put on more weight then the men, possibly because the men are used to putting on more calories then the women in everyday life.

Phase 3

I have two sources that are going to be very reliable in my research for this blog.
The first source is from Science Daily, http://www.sciencedaily.com. The direct link to this article is, http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/07/120702210214.htm. The article title is, Fast Food intake increases risk of diabetes and heart disease in Singapore. As I apply the CRAAP test to this source, I get these results; Currency - 10, Relevance - 10, Authority - 10, Accuracy - 10, Purpose - 10. From this, the article receives a perfect 50 out of 50 because it fits every point in the CRAAP test. This source is great for my blog because it shows research that has been done over a long period of time. I will be able to reference this and it's sources to find quality information about the health of fast food and what it does to the consumer.

My other source is from Harvard. The broad source is, http://www.hsph.harvard.edu. The direct like to this article is, http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/obesity-prevention-source/obesity-causes/food-environment-and-obesity/. The title of this article is, The Toxic food Environment. When I apply the CRAAP test to this source the results are; Currency - 8, Relevance - 10, Authority - 10, Accuracy - 10, Purpose - 10. The total results make this an excellent source with a total score of 48. This article shows the importance of multiple factors in the fast food vs health fight. While it states that fast food is bad for you, it also points out that there are many other factors that make the fast food companies look much worse than they really are.

Phase Two - Number 2

Fast food has been a controversial issue over the past decade or so. Many people complain about the healthiness of the food in the industry and claim that it is making people fat. So the big question is, "Should the fast food companies be blamed?" I am picking this topic because it is a very controversial issue and something that I can find true facts about it. I know that fast food is a very tasty and unhealthy meal that one can grab on the run. I also know that there are people who say that the fast food companies are wrong. I hope to learn the true sides of both argument and find out which side may actually have the better argument. The ideal audience for this blog is anyone who has a view on the fast food industry and they also care about their bodies health.

Starters

Well, here we go! I wanted to get a first post on my blog so that I did't have an empty blog. This will be fun!
EAT BACON! :)