Matt Whittington
                                                                         F Journalism
                                        Mixed Methods
The research from the Alantic article utilized mixed methods. The author, Karl Greenfeld, did all of his daughters homework for a week. One example of quantitative data he collected is when he started an e-mail chain, “That night, in an e-mail chain started by the class parent to seek chaperones for a field trip, I removed the teacher’s name, changed the subject line, and then asked the other parents in the class whether their children found the homework load onerous.” He recorded data from others, therefore this is quantitative. One example of qualitative data Karl recorded is when he did his daughters homework. "Tonight we have 12 more algebra equations," says Karl, and "45 more pages of Angela’s Ashes, and a Humanities project." This was a personal experience because he physically did it himself, and is therefore qualitative data. Another example of qualitative data is when he has to read his daughters book. "I sneak in and grab her copy of Angela’s Ashes and catch up on my reading, getting all the way to page 120." Says Karl. He had to actually read the book, and that is why this is another form of qualitative data. Karl Greenfeld utilized qualitative, and quantitative data, or mixed methods.

Matt Whittington  

Period:F

             The Man, The Myth, The Legend: Austin Cheda

Austin Cheda is a senior who attends Norton High School. For 

sports, Austin is a basketball player with a younger brother, and a 

cat named Lily. Austin claims that he is a fan of The Dark Knight 

films: "my favorite movies are from The Dark Knight  trilogy." 

Austin is a fan of many bands, and artists, but does not have a 

favorite. He states, "There is too many to pick." When Austin 

states, "no, no I have never killed a man" he claims he is not a 

murderer. "The last meal I ever get to eat before I die will have to 

be lasagna," says Cheda, "I love lasagna." Austin is an awesome 

guy, and seems like a cool guy to hang out with.

Matt Whittington Period: F

Gas Prices

Back In 1919, one gallon of gasoline cost $0.25. Today, The average cost of a gallon of gas is nearly four dollars. According to the Department of Energy, "the United States consumes about 20 million barrels of gas products per day." This is an immense amount of oil, and this is just for the United States. However gas prices constantly fluctuate, and the reason for this is the demand for gas. In the summer, the price of gas is much higher than in winter. The reason for this is because people are out of school, and traveling a lot, so gas is in extremely high demand. Another reason for high gas prices is natural disasters. In 2005 Hurricane Katrina had a direct effect on gas prices, raising them to an average of $3.07 per gallon, which was very high at the time. Even with greener technology, gas prices will continue to rise for decades to come, so it would be wise to use public transportation.

Matt Whittington Period: F

Behind The Rolling Stone Controversy

In an interesting, and respectable Rolling Stone article, the careless choice of a cover photo launches a swath of up rage from a nation in mourning. The article named “Jahar's World” was written by a woman named Janet Reitman. The article itself contained a diversity of sources including Jahars' high school wrestling coach, his friend Alyssa ,and an FBI agent. The variety of sources allows for an unbiased, and interesting article. The cover Rolling Stone selected , however, was a costly mistake.

Rolling Stone selected a “selfie” of Jahar Tsarnaev appearing as an attractive young man as their cover photo, but was seemingly unaware of the consequences. After the Boston Marathon Bombings, the nation was in a crazed frenzy trying to identify the people responsible. The identity of the bombers came as a shock to many including Jahars' wrestling coach, Payack, “'To think that a kid we mentored and loved like a son could have been responsible for all this death. It was beyond shocking.'” Then only a short while after the bombings Rolling Stone released a magazine with Tsarnaevs' face plastered on the cover. The reaction was apparent as many store owners boycotted the magazine. It is unlikely that many people actually read the article, before completely disregarding it. It was a case of reading a book (or magazine) by its cover, but that still is no excuse for a reputable company with thousands of other options.

For those who looked past the cover, and read the article, found an intriguing, and well written piece of journalism. The author, Janet Reitman, is a credible writer for Rolling Stone, which is one of the most reputable magazines in the entire world. She may have described Jahar as “a beautiful, tousle-haired boy with a gentle demeanor, soulful brown eyes and the kind of shy, laid back manner”, but she also called him a “monster”. This made for a fair and unbiased article. The article shed some light on how he, and his brother, Tamerlan, grew up in Boston, looking to start new lives. The Tsarnaevs were from Chechnya, a war-ridden nation without a lot of opportunity. Jahar had a seemingly great childhood, and was known as a “chill dude”. Tamerlan, however had a rough time growing up in America with a thick accent. Tamerlan later turned to Islam as a focus in his life, and he, and his brother moved back to Chechnya for

6 months. Then during the Boston marathon they succeeded in one of the most horrific acts of terrorism on American soil. “Jahar's World” by Janet Reitman is a very fair and interesting article.

That is why I believe that the article hiding behind the unreasonable cover photo, was very well written and worth the read. Rolling Stone, however, probably should have selected a much less offensive cover photo for such a controversial topic. It may have been a good idea for them to select something completely unrelated to the Boston marathon Bombings. In conclusion, it is very interesting to see how a nice young man, like Jahar, could commit such an atrocity.