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Running head: Technology, for good, or for worst.

The effect of the introduction of technology at The University of Texas at El Paso

Carlos Eduardo Lopez


English 1312
The University of Texas at El Paso

The effect of the introduction of technology at The University of Texas at El Paso.

Introduction. The introduction of technology to the University of Texas at El Paso


affected the life of the students and staff. There is an ongoing debate about the use of technology,
and the use of physical printed resources. One of the sources being analyzed is the website
Technology. Simple to supper, classroom and research technology evolve over 90 years by David
Peregrino.

The website displays a time line of important dates on the University of Texas at El

Paso. It includes dates ranging from before, and after the introduction of technology. The website
includes tabs that talk about the introduction, and evolution of computers: and the internet at
campus. The second genre being analyze is a newspaper article Special Report: School
Librarians "Shape the Vision" with Equal Parts Technology and Books, by Leonard kniffel. The
newspaper article restates the information of a conference held at Indianapolis in which the
debate was about technological and no technological resources. The author of the newspaper
article is stating the different positions of the presenters on the conference. One of the main
points, and most debatable was the meaning of being a librarian in a technological society. The
debate was made on points of how the introduction and advancement of technology has led to
changes in society. The paper will compare and contrast the two types of genre, focusing on
which resource is more complete to help with the research.
Audience and Purpose. The webpage is providing information of on
the introduction of technology to the University of Texas at El Paso, and how
it change over time. The information encountered is intended to inform the
reader on the important dates, yet it doesnt contains personal opinions
there are only fact. On the contrary the author of the newspaper portraits the
comments of a conference, but his choosing and arrangement has a deeper
meaning that what he is explicitly talking.

The effect of the introduction of technology at The University of Texas at El Paso.

The webpage article has a very formal format, and structure, for use of
an academic discourse community. The information is helpful when
researching about the university timeline, and the changes that it went
through. For focus on the research of technology effect since its introduction
to the university, the webpage is a great resource to find detailed
information on the dates, and the types of technological advances that took
place on the university campus. The intended discourse community is
knowledgeable on the idea that the technology at UTEP has change, and it
will depend that knowledge to a more specific level. The newspaper article is
arrange professionally, with college level vocabulary. It informs about the
debates made in the conference, yet the author gives more attention on the
statements of how technology has been affecting the work of librarians. The
focus given includes comments mostly related to the negative effect it has
place on the librarians, and as stated in the newspaper article by Alan
November that librarians are simply links to guide the public to the right
direction on their research, (page 26,27)). The article inexplicitly formulates
that technology has advance to a point where instead of benefiting all of the
society it has affected, it has place a lower value to libraries, physical copies,
and librarians.
The webpage is using endoxa due that the information is common
knowledge, and it can be tested by historians, primary resources such as
people, within others resources. The information listed in the links of the
dates is common knowledge as well as the information about the technology.

The effect of the introduction of technology at The University of Texas at El Paso.

On the newspaper article the author uses both endoxa, and doxa, but it
leaned more toward the use of doxa. The author use specific comments of
the speakers to understate his opinion.
Both are similar when on how the information is presented, it begins
with the main idea discussion then both provide details on their respected
subjects. The website, for one part, is only purpose is to inform, while the
article uses both types of writings, doxa and endoxa, to undermine its real
message.
Rhetorical Issues. The webpage author has credibility, being a teacher at the University
of Texas at El Paso. The author decreases the use of images, graphics and decreases the use of
pathos for a mood of formality. The teacher increases the credibility of the webpage by posting
the page on the, .utep.edu, domain meaning that the university has approved the publishing
content of the webpage. The use of pathos on the webpage is very little, for the author uses no
images, and the information is very informative, with little glimpses of persuasion, or pathos.
The newspaper article author as well as the author of the webpage has credibility, for he
is a well-known writer and executive at the American Library Association in Chicago. This gives
the author a credibility. Other reason the author builds credibility for the article is for the
newspaper article is found on a national recognized databased, JSTOR. The author uses pathos,
and takes a side on the debate. The author takes the words of the speakers to appeal to the
emotions of the authors without making the claims specific. The author used more of the
negative comments of the conference speakers, for the stand that technology has had a negative
effect. The quotes mainly are of pathos rather than credibility, or logos, and used by the author to
make his stand on the debate.

The effect of the introduction of technology at The University of Texas at El Paso.

Structure and delivery. The information on the webpage is


interactive, and uses a timeline to make the changes in the university over
time more clear. The opening page contains comments on the author makes
concerning the types of technology that where introduces at UTEP. The
arrangement is very practical and interactive which helps researchers travel
to the ages a little without confusion. The webpage uses one image at the
main page which helps to maintain a sense of formality. The links to the side
of the webpage guide to the UTEP encyclopedia, over the years the
university has been around, which contain pictures for easy of finding
relevant information, or what to expect around that decade. For example to
find the date when technology was first appearing on the UTEP, it is easy to
click any date to navigate on the website time line, then to find the what is
needed it is easy to go through the decades, for example the 1600 to find
that technology was first introduced at the university in 1965. The website is
very formal and easy to navigate and find information.
The newspaper article is not structure in a formal manner it jumps from
idea to idea due to the explanation of the comments of the speakers.
Comments on both side where mention on the article, yet the author
emphasize on the negative comments of specific speakers about technology.
The comments of Bill Erbes, where there is very little censorship on the
internet where it goes in to detail on how adult videos, and sexual
contentment on the internet is available to students (page31).This opens the
idea for a deeper meaning of the article, and the reader, that it is trying to

The effect of the introduction of technology at The University of Texas at El Paso.

convey the idea that technology is a great resource but it cant beat the use
of books, or printed copies of articles and journals that had been revised. The
author includes pictures on most of the pages of the articles for a visual
representation of the scene of the actual debate. The reader can look at the
pictures and get a little clearer image of what the author is stating and how
this comments, and pictures, revel an extended meaning for what the article
is intended to be.

Conclusion. With this genre analysis, where two different types of


genre resources where compare and contrast, there is plenty of evidence to
state that the webpage is more resourceful for the purpose of the genre
analysis. The web site is very helpful for finding information, and creating a
sense of logos, and using endoxa, for a more reliable research resource. It is
great for finding general information, and even to be specific on what date
something happened. The webpage doesnt include any personal opinion
about the issue of technology having a positive, or negative effect on the
university.
On the other hand, the newspaper article which is informal, and was
giving a resume of what happened at a conference, has an extended
meaning of what the purpose of the newspaper was intended to be. It has
comments of speakers for both sides of the topic; technology has a positive
or negative effect on academic discourse communities. The author has more

The effect of the introduction of technology at The University of Texas at El Paso.

comments of the negative side of technology than on the positive side, which
for a researcher, it opens for the idea that the author was trying to convince
the general public about his opinion on technology without explicitly stating
on the paper.
With this two opinions, and resources, and the information provided on
the analysis is safe to state that the newspaper article is more useful for the
topic for it leans more towards one side of the argument. This helps to open
a discussion, on whether agreeing or disagreeing with the author point of
view. The webpage is resourceful but it doesnt opens discussion as the
newspaper does.

References
Kniffel, L. (1995). Special report: School librarians "shape the vision" with equal
parts technology and books. American Libraries, 26(1), 26-27, 29, 31. Retrieved
from http://0 www.jstor.org.lib.utep.edu/stable/25633472
Peregrino, D. (2000). Technology. Simple to supper. Retrieved from
http://www.utep.edu/90thanniversary/timeline/technology.aspx

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