The Alcohol Content of Whiskey

Introduction

The purpose of this experiment was to determine the alcohol content of a sample of whiskey and a sample of vodka. To achieve the purpose of the experiment, the entire class worked to obtain the densities of a wide range of ethanol/water mixtures. These densities were put into a plot that related them to their percent composition, and were compared to the densities of the whiskey and vodka samples.

Procedure

Different alcohol/water solutions were assigned to each student. Volumetric pipets were used to prepare three 10.0 mL samples that composed of 4.5 mL ethanol and 5.5 mL water, creating the assigned 45% ethanol solution. The samples were combined in a beaker and covered and then 5 mL were withdrawn using the volumetric pipet and put into pre-weighed vials. The vials were weighed again and their masses recorded. For each of the 5 mL solution samples, the mass without the vial and the density were calculated, along with the average density and the standard deviation using a TI-83 Plus calculator. The data of each of the different assigned ethanol/water solutions, the whiskey, and the vodka, were combined and put onto an Excel document, and made available to the class. The average densities and standard deviation of the whiskey and vodka samples were calculated on Excel. A scatter plot was produced of the density vs the percent composition on the ethanol/water solutions. It was determined that the data was linear so an equation was calculated and plotted using Excel that best fitted the to the data. The calculated densities of the whiskey and vodka where plugged into the equation to calculate the alcohol content of the whiskey and vodka.

Detailed procedures may be found in reference 1.

Results

Figure 1 shows a plot of the densities calculated of the samples of different ethanol/water compositions. Figure 1 is important because it allowed me to easily see if there was a pattern in the data, to see how close that data was, and use the equation of the best-fit to calculate alcohol content of the whiskey and vodka samples.

Figure 1. Scatter plot of the calculated densities of the ethanol/water samples.

From the calculated average densities of the whiskey and vodka and the equation of best-fit line in Figure 1, the alcohol concentration of the whiskey was calculated to be 36.2% (v/v) and the vodka’s  to be 35.7% (v/v). The calculated PRE of the whiskey is 9.63% and the calculated PRE of the vodka is 10.9%.

Discussion

The the plot (figure 1) had a respectable R2 value of 0.9632 and there were no outliers, but the majority of the points were not directly on the best-fit line. The points were linear pattern, the average density decreased as the ethanol concentration increased. The concentration of alcohol in the sample of whiskey (36.2% (v/v)) and the sample of vodka (35.7% (v/v)) as calculated from the best-fit line in figure 1, were less than the reported concentration of alcohol (40% (v/v)) given on the label of the bottles. The PRE of the whiskey was 9.63% and the PRE of the vodka was 10.9%. The differences in the calculated concentrations and the reported may have been caused by not making precise measurements, and the assumption that the whiskey and vodka only contained ethanol and water. Because the calculated and the reported concentrations of the whiskey and vodka were different, the fundamental assumption that they only contain alcohol and water is not valid. The data points in figure 1 appeared to be fairly precise, which made the rejection of that assumption more valid.

References

1. General Chemistry Experiments: A Manual for Chemistry 204, 205, and 206, Department of Chemistry, Southern Oregon University: Ashland, OR, 2009

Determination of Water Density

Introduction

The purpose of this experiment was to compare the precision of some of the laboratory instruments and determine the density of purified water. The density of water was determined using three different volume-measuring devises. Five milliliters of water was measured using the three different volume-measuring devises three times each, and was then weighed on the analytical balance.

Procedure

Three vials were cleaned and then weighed on the analytical balance. Using a 100 mL graduated cylinder, five milliliters of water were measured and poured into each of the vials. The vials were then weighed on the analytical balance again and their masses recorded. The vials were dried, and the steps repeated using a 100 mL graduated pipet and again using a volumetric pipet. The density of water was calculated for masses of the three different measuring devises. The densities were then compared to each other and to the actual density of water.

Results

Tables one, two, and three show the mass of the vials and the mass of the vials containing water that was measured using the three different volume-measuring devises.

Table 1: Data obtained using a 100 mL graduated cylinder to measure a 5.0 mL sample of water. 

Trial	Mass of vial (g)	Mass of vial and water (g)
1	19.8155	24.745
2	20.6247	23.7373
3	21.2078	24.848

Table 2: Data obtained using a 100 mL graduated pipet to measure a 5.0 mL sample of water.

Trial	Mass of vial (g)	Mass of vial and water (g)
1	19.8155	24.9443
2	20.6247	25.4928
3	21.2078	26.1954

Table 3: Data obtained using a 100 mL volumetric cylinder to measure a 5.0 mL sample of water.

Trial	Mass of vial (g)	Mass of vial and water (g)
1	19.8155	24.7281
2	20.6247	25.2298
3	21.2078	25.6645

After the masses were determined, the densities of the data were calculated with the Microsoft Excel program. The Excel worksheet is stapled to this report.

Table 4: Average density water obtained from each devise. 

Measuring devise	Average density (g/mg)
100 mL Graduated Cylinder	0.9859 + or - 0.1869
100 mL Graduated Pipet	0.99897 + or - 0.02610
5.00 mL Volumetric Pipet	0.98252 + or - 0.04651

Discussion

The lab was fairly successful in accurately determining the density of water and the precision of the instruments. The second set of data, where the graduated pipet was used to measure the water volume, is the most accurate with a percent relative error of 0.097 when compared with the given density of water. The data where the graduated cylinder was used is slightly less accurate with a percent relative error of 1.21. This is most likely because it is more difficult to have precise measurements using a graduated cylinder. The data collected from the volumetric pipet is the least accurate with a percent relative error of 1.55. This is most likely because the instrument takes more practice and skill to use correctly than the other instruments, or it is not as precise as the other measuring instruments. 

References

1. General Chemistry Experiments: A Manual for Chemistry 204, 205, and 206, Department of Chemistry, Southern Oregon University: Ashland, OR, 2009

Molecular Modeling with Spartan: Polyatomic Molecules, VSEPR, Localized and Delocalized Bonding

Introduction
Spartan Student Edition was used to construct and examine molecular diagrams of H2O, NH3, CH4, and SF4. The properties examined include electron density, dipole moments, electrostatic potential maps, and equilibrium geometries. The geometries calculated with spartan were compared to the VSPER calculations. Spartan was used to examine the electron density, electrostatic potentials, and electrostatic charges of NO2 , NO2+, and NO2-, and compare them to the predictions made by using Lewis structures.
Procedure
The H2O molecule was created and the electrostatic charges were displayed for the atoms. All equilibrium geometry calculations were done at the B3LYP level in a 6-31G* basis set using Spartan Student Edition. The 0.002 electron/Å3 isodensity surface was calculated and displayed for H2O. Then a 0.08 electron/Å3 isodensity surface was calculated, displayed, and used to observe the electron density. An electrostatic potential map was created, made transparent, and legend displayed. To visualize the volume taken up by the lone pairs, a potential isodensity surface was calculated at the value of -83.68 kJ/mol. The angles and distances between the atoms were calculated. This procedure was repeated on the NH3 and CH4 molecules.
An electrostatic potential map was created and displayed for SF4. The bond angles and lengths were found and created. The molecules energy (au) was found and recorded. Another SF4 molecule was created which had three fluorine atoms in equatorial positions and one in an axial position, and the same procedure was done with it.
An electrostatic potential map was created for the NO2 molecule and the electrostatic charges displayed. An 0.08 electron/Å3 isodensity map was displayed. The bond lengths and angles were measured and recorded. The same procedure was followed on NO2+ and NO2- as was NO2.
Detailed procedures can be found in reference 1.

Results
The electron density of water was not distributed evenly throughout the molecule, as can be seen in Figure 1. The highest electron density was near the oxygen and the bonds where the red and green areas were.

Figure 1. Electrostatic Potential Diagram of Water Molecule.





The electron density of ammonia was not distributed evenly throughout the molecule, as can be seen in Figure 2.

Figure 2. Electrostatic Potential Diagram of Ammonia.
The electron density of Methane was not distributed evenly throughout the molecule but was symmetrical, as can be seen in Figure 3.

Figure 3. Electrostatic Potential Diagram of Methane.
The bond angles, bond lengths, and dipole moments were calculated using spartan, and the bond lengths predicted by the VSEPR theory. This data can be found in Table 1.
Table 1. The bond angles, bond lengths, and dipole moments calculated using spartan, and the bond lengths predicted by the VSEPR theory.
Molecule Angles (degrees) VSEPR Angles (degrees) Bond Length (Å) Dipole Moment (D)
H2O 103.70° 109.5° 0.969 2.09
NH3 105.76° 109.5° 1.019 1.91
CH4 109.47° 109.5° 1.093 0.00
SF4 equilateral: 102.09°
axial: 87.29° 120°
90° 1.595
1.672 0.89
SF4 (w/ 3 F atoms in equilateral positions) equilateral: 119.14°
axial: 84.66° 120°
90° 1.679
1.067 0.85
NO2 133.82° 120° 1.203 -
NO2+ 179.99° 180° 1.129 -
NO2- 129.98° 120° 1.305 -
1.1 The bond angels in the molecules increase from water, to ammonia, to methane. This is because the bond angles decrease when more lone pairs are present. The lone pairs push the other bonds because they take up more space than bonded electrons.
1.2 The bond angles of the three molecules, found using the VSPER theory are all 109.5° because they are tetrahedrals. The bond angles found using Spartan are different because it into account the effects of lone pairs and double bonds.
1.3 The bond lengths are shorter in water than ammonia, and longer in methane than ammonia. This is because the electronegativity of the central atom, the greater the electronegativity the closer it pulls the bonding atom.
1.4 Electrostatic charges exist in water, ammonia and methane because each atom has a partial charge. Electronegativity causes the electrons in the molecule to be attracted to certain atoms, giving the atoms different partial charges and making the atom polar.
1.5 The dipole moment in water is larger than the one in ammonia, and methane doesn’t have a dipole moment. Each atom’s electronegativity along with the molecules lone pairs and the dimensions of the molecule effect the molecules electrostatic charge. The electrostatic charge can be represented by a dipole moment, which shows the size and direction of the force.
1.6 A molecular dipole moment of zero does not mean that there is not a separation of charge. There are often positively charged atoms and negatively charged atoms, but the charges are distributed evenly throughout the molecule.

The bond angles in SF4 found using Spartan were significantly different than than the angles predicted using the VSEPR theory. The bond angles in SF4 with three fluorine atoms in equilateral positions are close to the angles predicted using the VSEPR theory.

The electron density in the NO2/NO2+/NO2- molecules appeared different in each molecule and were consistent with the predictions made using the lewis structures. All of these predictions were close the calculations made using spartan. In the three molecules, NO2+ has the shortest bond length followed by NO2 and NO2- with the longest. NO2+ has the largest angle, followed by NO2, and NO2- has the smallest.

Discussion
The bond lengths and angels in the molecules increase from water, to ammonia, to methane. The bond lengths act in that manner because the bond angles get smaller when there are more lone pairs in the molecule, which repel the other atoms. The lone pairs push the other bonds because they are not localized and take up more space than a bond. The VSEPR theory defines all three of these molecules tetrahedrals and doesn’t take into account the lone pairs, which is why it’s angle predictions are not precise in many cases. The bond lengths are different because the electronegativity of the central atoms are not the same. The greater the electronegativity, the closer it pulls the bonding electron. Electronegativity also the causes these molecules to have electrostatic charges. In some molecules the charges were identical but went in opposite directions and canceled out. The difference in the equilateral and axial bond lengths were due to the atoms positions around the central atom, and the repulsion from the lone pairs. The differences in the bond angles and lengths from spartan and VSEPR demonstrate the importance of considering factors such as repulsion from lone pairs and atom sizes.

References
1. General Chemistry Experiments: A Manual for Chemistry 204, 205, and 206, Southern Oregon University: Ashland OR, Fall 2010

2. Brown, LeMay, Burnsten, Murphy. Chemistry: The Central Science. 11th Edition. Pearson Prentice Hall. Upper Saddle River, NJ. 2009.

Farmingville

The migration of thousands of Latino day workers to the Farmingville community has created great culture shock and debate. Education about each culture is one step towards helping the Latino workers assimilate, decrease segregation and help both sides with culture shock. Many members of the community have differing opinions and beliefs. Gaining a better understanding of these beliefs is the first step to finding a solution.
Louise says in the film that she wants to know who is around her and who lives in her neighborhood. The migrant workers have made her lose this feeling of comfort in her community. Margaret Bianculli-Dyber simply wants the migrant workers to disappear. She feels that U.S. laws have been disrespected and does not trust or appreciate that changes in Farmingville. In her quest, she does not understand nor ask, in a way that prompts answers, why these workers are in her community and how tensions can be decreased so that the community is not constantly at war. Margret does not consider herself to be racist, but is trying to make the clock turn back to a time where she did not have to worry about who is standing on her street corner. Paul Tonna, the county legislator understands that something needs to be done in Farmingville to decrease tension and supports the use of tax payer dollars to build a hiring site. If the community could find a way to educate each other about the cultures that are now in this town maybe tensions over cultural differences would decrease.
Both the day workers and the Farmingville residents are experiencing culture shock in this situation. They do not know how to interact in the other group’s culture and therefore they do not understand and are sometimes intolerant of the differences in their cultures. With education, both cultural groups would learn about where the other was from and how to communicate in a way that promotes a community feeling instead of dividing the community.
All three of the interviewees in Farmingville agree that there is a problem that started with the migrant workers moving into the town. The differences in the three are how they view the rift in the community and how they approach healing that rift. Margaret believes that the immediate deportation of all the migrant workers will instantly solve the community’s problems. Louise wants the community to be a community again, no matter who is in it. Paul Tonna wants to find a way that the migrant workers can work side by side with the legal residents of Farmingville. He does not propose allowing the situation to stay as it is but instead proposes that steps are taken to try and reach a common ground between the two cultures.
We feel that the key to better understanding this situation and finding a solution is in education and responsibility. First, all sides need to come together with an open mind and have rational conversations without loosing their tempers. If the legal Farmingville residents got to know the day laborers, why they choose to come to their community, what their intentions are, and general knowledge about their culture, that would be a start to better understanding. I think this aspect of the solution would help to put Louise at ease. A meeting like this would also help the day laborers to gain more information about the previous Farmingville culture and help them integrate it with their Latino culture.
Another aspect of the solution is to assign responsibility and hold people accountable. We feel that the Farmingville citizens, day laborers, and employers all have some responsibility in allowing this situation to escalate the way it has. The citizens have to understand that there is a need for the day laborers. They would not have come to a place where there was not a demand for manual labor. These citizens have no interest in mowing lawns or doing dishes, so to condemn the men who are willing to work hard is a serious mistake. The day migrant workers also have to realize that their presence has seriously changed the dynamic of the community. They must be held responsible for the same laws that all other community members are. Harassment, destruction of property, and other crimes are not to be tolerated from anyone. The employers need to find a balance with the work they are doing. They cannot skate around tax laws just to make a buck. These employers are changing the value and payment of manual labor. Middle ground is needed from what was done in the past to what is going on now.

Intercultural Film Review

The Visitor, written and directed by Tom McCarthy, was a surprisingly good film. It is a deeply moving movie about Walter, played by Richard Jenkins, who was a widowed college professor living a depressed and aimless life, until he unexpectedly found a couple living in his New York apartment when on a business trip. The couple, Tarek and Zainab, were illegal immigrants victimized in a reality scam where they payed rent to someone who didn’t own the apartment. Walter allowed the couple to stay in his apartment with him because they seemed to have no where else to go. This situation forces Walter to deal with issues related to immigration, identity, and cross-cultural communication. While they were living with him he ended up bonding with them and found some compassion and positive changes in his life.
Walter’s deceased wife was an excellent piano player, and Walter attempted with much frustration to learn the piano. During his time in New York Walter finally decides to give up playing the piano and he takes up a new instrument which he is much more talented and compassionate about, the drums. Tarek gives Walter drumming lessons and Walter loves his new instrument. Walter and Tarek seem to from a connection and friendship through the music. The drumming acts as a medium of communication across the two cultures. During the short time that Walter lived with Tarek and Zainab he changes substantially. He seemed to finally start getting over the death of his deceased wife and he starts to be more kind and enjoy life more.
Zainab used a great amount of body language to express how she felt. At first her body language was negative and slightly hesitant towards Walter. After she got to know him better her body language seemed to become more positive towards him.
Tarek is a very kind and generous musician from Syria, making a living by playing his African drums. Zainab, who is from Senegal, sells handmade jewelry at a little booth in the street to make a living. A person buying some of her jewelry at their stand was asking her where she was from. When Zainab told her that she was from Senegal, the lady said “ohh, that’s so neat! I have been to Cape Town before, what a beautiful area!” Cape Town and Senegal are thousands of mile away from each other and are very different. This seem shows the true ignorance of a typical United States citizen.
The film made me more aware of some of the hardships that foreigners face here in the United States. It also made me more aware of how many of United States citizens are very ignorant about how immigration and deportation goes about here and about what it would be like to be a foreigner.
One evening rushing through the subway, Tarek gets stuck in the entrance and climbs over the bar. Even though he can show his paid ticket stub he is arrested.
The police found out that he was an illegal immigrant and he was put into detention. Walter, who before meeting Tarek and Zainab was not know for his senticitivitfy towards others, but in the case of Tarek getting arrested he does everything he can to try to help him. Unlike the sadness Walter faced from because his wife, the grief that he experiences from this situation opens him up to others, to the difficulties of people he has never noticed, and opens his moral horizons. He continues to visit Tarek in jail and even hires an immigration lawyer to help Tarek. Zaneb has moved to her cousins house. When arrested, Tarek seems to be more concerned with Zainab and his mothers welfare, and even Walter's drumming lessons, than he is with his own dire situation. Tarek’s mother and Zaneb can't visit him because they are both here illegally.  
Tarek’s beautiful mother shows up a few days after the arrest because Tarek has not been returning her phone calls. Walter invites her to stay in his apartment and she accepts and stays in Tarek’s old room. Walter and her start dating and comfort each other during their unsuccessful attempts to prevent Tarek from being deported.
It is devastating when Tarek is deported to Walter, Zainab, and Tarek’s mother. Tarek’s mother decides to go back to Syria to make sure that he is okay, knowing that she will never be able to return. People are deported by the judges from the United States relentlessly, with what seems to be very little compassion or concern for the people being deported.
This movie, The Visitor, helps break the stereotypes that are associated with Arabs. It challenges the judgment that Arabs are terrorists, by letting us get to know some Arabs that are very kind and loving people.
Both The Visitor and the movie Farmingville that we have been watching in class have brought up the issue of illegal immigrants and deportation. There are very good reasons on both sides of the arguments around deportation. In The Visitor, the lawyer made it seem like it would be almost impossible for Tarek to get to stay in the United States, and that there wasn’t much time, energy, or compassion put into his case from the governments side in considering if he should be allowed to stay or not. There are several reasons why the people in the movie Farmingville wanted the illegal mexican immigrants in their town to be deported: One of the Farmingville residents shared that she thought it was necessary that all the people in the town should be in a government record so that if they do something bad they can be prosecuted, which is a valid point. Many of the Farmingville residents feel that the illegal immigrants are dangerous and should be deported, which may be a valid point, or may be stereotypes and racism. They also had a valid point that many of them lived thirty to a house, which seemed to create some problems in the neighborhood. But there are arguments from the other side as well that seem just as valid, if not more so. It typically cost just as much, if not more, to deport illegal immigrants as it cost for them to stay. It is also very difficult to keep them from just coming back. Also, there is usually a good reason for them to be in the states anyways, and that should be put into consideration.
The film The Visitor only takes an inside view on the topic of deportation and illegal immigrants. From the perspectives of all the main characters in the film, Tarek was deported unjustly. The Visitor does not share the views of any outsiders, like Farmingville does. The film makes the viewer love Tarek before the deportation process, which gives the viewer a perspective on what it would be like to have someone that their are close to go through. I think that if the people in the film Farmingville could empathize with the people that they are trying to get deported then they would feel that they deserve to stay and would try to help the live better lives instead of harassing and avoiding them.
All in all, The Visitor was a great movie. It was mind opening in many different aspects, including; immigration policies, illegal immigrants, the ignorance of United States civilians, communication styles in different people, and in breaking the stereotypes of Arabs as well as illegal immigrants. I found this to be a entertaining and somewhat educational film. I recommend it to everyone to watch.

Last week I went to the Race Monologues. This was a very interesting, entertaining program that opened my eyes about how race is still very much an issue in modern day society. There were about ten college students of all different races on the main stage. They all took turns telling us stories of different people who had to deal with injustice because of their race. I am very glad that I attended this event during Racial Identity Week.
To my surprise one of my friends was upon the ten collage students on the stage. I was never aware of how big of a deal not being white affected her life. She is a music major, and is hoping to sing for a living after she graduates. Physical appearance is very important in the profession that she plans on entering. She has mentioned that she always has to be really careful about her weight because of the profession that she is going into, but never mentioned the fact that it isn’t as likely for her to have a successful career because the fact that she is from Filipino decent. It makes me sad to think that that is the case. She is a wonderful person with a wonderful voice who deserves to be among the famous but it very unlikely that she will make it that far simply because she is not white. She briefly explained this injustice to the audience.
There is still way too much racial injustice in this world, and that really needs to change. It was so interesting listening to the stories that were told during the Race Monologues. I have always avoided such events because I have expected them to be very boring and a waste of time. I also avoided them because I thought that I knew everything I need to know about race, and that the events couldn’t teach me anything important. The race Monologues made me much more aware of all the racial injustice that happens, and also opened my mind to the fact that I actually have been creating some of the racial injustice myself. I have many colored friends and even a couple family members that are African American, and am by no means a raciest, but I still have been unconsciously stereotyping people of different races.
It is important to occasionally attend events on racial injustice and listen to the stories, because when we don’t we tend to forget that it really is still a great problem and that it might actually be partly our fault, as part of society, that is making it that way. I enjoyed attending Race Monologues very much and I plan on attending other events that are similar in the future.

Intercultural Language Log

There are many aspects of human language, many of which vary from culture to culture. While observing how people communicate the past few days, I have realized that my university town has a very large array of cultural expression. People express themselves and communicate with others in a variety of ways both verbally and physically. When a group of people spends a lot of time together, they tend start similar words, ways of talking, dress similarly, and use similar hand and facial gestures. People pick up these ways of communicating mostly from their family and friends. Therefore, people of different cultures and social groups express themselves differently. I have also found that people use different language when their environment changes.
Last weekend I went to a house party that ended up having a very diverse group of people present. I noticed many different cultural groups interacting, all in their own ways, although everyone used language that seems typical for young college students. I noticed that females often use more nonverbal codes to express themselves than males. Most of the male athletes, particularly the wrestlers, had a confident tone in their voice, and seemed to use a lot of facial expression and an average amount of body expression for males. There were a few “hippies” present, who seemed to be very mellow and friendly. The female hippies used an average amount of facial and body expression, but loved to talk! The male hippie also talked a lot and used quite a bit of arm movements to express himself. They dressed in clothing that gave them a laid back and environmentally friendly look. There was a lot of chatting, laughing, and dancing going on in the house, which made it easy to observe the communication trends between my peers.
I have had the chance to observe some of the same people who were at the party several times in a very different environment; church. When these college students are in the environment of church, they often have many of the same communication characteristics, but they also alter some of them. Even though my church has a casual dressing code, all of them were dressed very differently than they were at the party and their attire communicated a different message. Most of the females wore clothing that is less promiscuous and more sophisticated, and wore more subtle makeup. Most of the males wore nicer shirts that didn’t have writing on them. When in the church I noticed that there was much less slang and very little to no swearing used. For the most part, everyone in the church used the same body and facial expressions as they do in other environments. On the other hand, the people that are strict Christians (people who follow the bible strictly and attend church on a regular basis) have different communication habits than the others. The females don’t wear promiscuous clothing when in any public place. I have noticed that the strict Christians of the church I have been attending usually don’t use bad words, but still use plenty of slang.
I observed my aunt, uncle, and their friends and found that many of them feel more socially confident than people on my generation. They seem to use more facial expression when talking and give better eye contact. The physical appearance of the successful middle-age people I observed often seemed to communicate confidence, although I am unsure if that was just the particular group of people I was observing. Middle age people tend to care about comfort very much in their clothing, but also want to look nice. I have rarely seen middle-aged women dressed promiscuously. They often wear prominent jewelry, which may communicate a sense of economical status or an outgoing personality. They also use different words than people of my generation do. Middle-aged people typically don’t use as much slang, and often use a more extensive vocabulary. They seem to know what they want more than the younger generations and use filler words, such as “um…” and “so…”, much less. The group seemed to use lower-context language (Martin & Nakayama p.220) than younger groups, as they didn’t say as many abbreviated words or sayings and tended to make what they felt very clear.
The children I observed have the most unique communication characteristics of any of the groups that I have observed. I mostly observed the children that I babysit, and also a few that attend my church. The boys and girls seem to communicate very similarly to each other. When trying to explain something or tell a story, they tended to talk very quickly and use many arm gestures. They often included unimportant details that most adults would not mention, and used excessive arm gestures and physical expressions. On the other hand, I observed many children being very shy and hesitant to speak when they are in an unfamiliar environment or around new people. They tend to have much more high-context communication (Martin & Nakayama p.220) than older people. Once the children get to their teenage years they typically slow down how fast they talk and use a number of arm gestures and facial expression closer to the amount that collage students use.
The different ways people communicate is very interesting to study. It is amazing how people change their communication styles so drastically from childhood to late teens and early twenties, and then change them more by the time they hit middle age. It is also interesting how different social groups, such as the wrestlers and hippies, have different very different communication styles. The people that I observed used a vast array of communication styles to let others know what they think and feel about a large number of topics. The way that people communicate is very complex here in Ashland Oregon, and I can imagine that if I had an opportunity to observe communication in places with even more diverse cultures I would find much more complexity.
Bibliography
Intercultural Communication in Context. 2007. Martin & Nakayama. McGraw-Hill Higher Education