Category Archives: ENG 1101

Advice to incoming student

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To the incoming student:
Before talking about the class, I want to tell you an equation, college student is equal an adult. When you are a college student, people expect you are responsible and knowing what to do. Therefore, the excuse that you used in high school is not so useful at the college anymore. Grow up, guys.
As a freshman, I feel lucky I have this class. I live in Manhattan five years since I move in New York; and I never step out of my bubble. “Being in Brooklyn” really gives me a new vantage point of New York. You can learn more about the Downtown Brooklyn, the new environment, and learn how to give your school life more color. As a new student, you might have a problem that no friends from your old high school have the same class with you. Yes, this is the problem I have at the beginning of the class, but now, no more. Since you have same classmates in both Speech and English class, you can meet new friends, chatting with them at that 15 minutes break. When God makes time, it makes plenty of it, so use that time.
If you want me to rate this course, I think it will be nine out of ten. So where does that one point go? It probably the speech and the Open lab; personally, I do like speech, and I don’t like to use computer to do the daily homework, because the computer is always distract me. So if you cannot bear that temptation as I did, I suggest you to open another account on your computer, with icon of Microsoft word only. Do not miss any assignment, not matter how small percentage they are, it still have power to affect your grade at the end. More importantly, DO NOT ABSENCE, because more than four absences, you cannot take you final test; and you if fail your final test, congratulation, you have to take the same course again.
Hoping you enjoy this class, and gain a good grade.

Sincerely,
Student in fall 2013

Brooklyn bridge Summary

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Brooklyn Bridge, This Bridge represents New York and when people think of New York, they think of the Brooklyn Bridge. This Bridge was planned and masterminded by A German born Immigrant named John A. Roebling. However before John A. Roebling could start the construction, he died when he was inspecting the site and got injured and died few days later from an infection, his son Washington  Roebling took over since he had helped his dad with the maps of the bridge. When the construction was started the hardest part was the digging the foundations.  This problem was solved wit the idea of casssions where a enormous wood box with air compressed into them with no bottom would be sunk into bottom an d workers would dig the foundation and this was dangerous work that caused a lot of illness also to Washington A Roebling leaving him paralyzed for life and his wife Emily had to take over. In this bridge the most interesting part are the 276 long towers. Adopted from the gothic architecture and made of limestone’s they add to the beauty of the Bridge. The Bridge also connects Brooklyn and Manhattan making life easier for thousand of people and helped New York to be what it is today.

summary of project 4

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Henry Beecher was the first pastor at Plymouth Church. Thanks to him the popularity of the church increased rapidity through out time. Is that Henry Ward Beecher wasn’t a ordinary pastor. He was also a abolitionist that through his preaching tried to make a difference in this world. That was the main reason why he accepted to be the pastor in the first place. He knew that being a pastor he would get farther as a abolitionist. He did make a difference. He got to help slaves hide on the underground railroad era, he even bought slaves. One of them was pinky. Thanks to him purchasing her from her owner she was able to be free. Even though he did great things he was also known for sex scandal he got into. He supposedly committed adultery   in his own church with one of his friends wife. This got him in a lot of trouble, he even had to go to court for it. There was no proof of it so the case became exonerated. He may had his flaws but he achieved great things for this society. No one is perfect, but what counts is what you could do to make this world a better place to live on.

Letter of Advice

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Dear next year student,

As this being your first semester in City Tech most of you wont know the area really well. Well with this course you would end up knowing most of it by the research projects that you are going to have to do. All the project are about a location around the school. But this would also give you a chance to get  to know the neighborhood your going to spent years studying a lot better. you will come to know how significant each place around here is. also you would learn to appreciate its history through the research you would do and your classmates would do as well. Maybe you would see this neighborhood not important at all when your first starting college but I assure you it hides the most fascinating places in NYC! but am sure you going to find out through this English course how true my words are. You would also get to read many stories about Brooklyn and most of them are all about places around here. It would make you feel like you want to visit each place you hear in each story. Don’t worry you wont be alone on this because professor Rosin and Davis start off by giving you a tour around this places so you can familiarize your self with it. Then your off to pick your special place. Which would be a place that interest you since you first laid your eyes on it. This English class comes together with your speech class so you would get to be with your same classmates as on English in speech as well. I would like to tell you not to worry even though this is a challenging class you would love the experience you get from it. I know I do. Have fun guys and learn.

Summary of Project 4

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Brooklyn Historical Society is one of the few examples of the 19th century kind of a combined museum and library still in existence. The written piece by me compared three major renovations which were done to the building since it was built. Each renovation done by a different individual consisted of different ideas, proposals and theory.The first renovation done by George B. Post which used terra cotta and red bricks to support the central ceiling of the building and came out to be known as one of the first building to use locally produced terra cotta . Another renovation which took place by Jan Hird associates in 1999-2003 focused more on considering the benefits to its interior to preserve the historical resources. For ex: Installing climate control, renovating the clock tower and replacement of stained glass lay light. A last additional renovation was completed recently by Christoff which consisted of a new classroom with advanced technology, two new gallery spaces and newly built 200 seat auditorium. In conclusion, all three renovations done to the building were made to add more glory and splendor. However, all three renovations differed from each other because every individual has its own unique perspective of approaching to a similar thing.

Letter of Advice

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Dear Incoming Students,

Everyone is nervous about their first semester of college, I know I was without a shadow of a doubt. You don’t know what to expect how you will be instructed by your professors because it’s a whole new environment. My first piece of advice is that the moment you step into your institution of education whether it be a university or a college, everything is completely different from the once familiarized high school procedure. When you enroll into Eng 1101 you better familiarize yourself with the word “location” because this course revolves around certain locations that your professor will announce and will require you to further expand your knowledge around this area especially if you are new to the neighborhood. This process can be overwhelming if underestimated because incoming students will find out shortly that they much do things that they’ve never done before in high school such as taking a 10-15 minute walk exploring the designated location, choosing a location that interests you and to take pictures of the location or landmark that interests you. Depending on the student the writing assignments can be very difficult if you plan to do it the night before, this course requires you to do things in a organized fashion IF you want a pleasing grade. This course also requires tons of preparation and discussions that will be done at home and in class with the professor and your fellow classmates. As long as you complete the assignments on time you will not be overwhelmed because as soon as you turn it that assignment, you are almost immediately handed a new one for the next couple of weeks. I have one last piece of advice, you must do your best work, and give it 100 percent it can be a bit boring nearing the end because you’ve been stuck on this one location/neighborhood for the last 3-4 months so pick a location that has a lot of historical value in which interests you. The professor I had, Professor Rosen did quite at good job explaining and discussing the projects and what we had to do which made our lives much easier. I hope you all have the best of luck!

Advisement Letter

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Dear Next Year Students,

Everybody is scared during their first semester of college. You don’t know what to expect and your really clueless. You really want to do well and don’t get distracted and keep a high GPA for your first semester. One thing I can tell you is that college is nothing like high school where the teacher will chase after you for your work. You have to be on your work and you can’t be lazy and think that you can’t slack or be careless on your work because you won’t get a good grade. In English and effective speaking it involves a lot of writing and presentations. In English you will have to write six papers which two are the midterm and final exam. The midterm and final exams are basically the same format you have to follow. You will have to write a summary for the first part and the second part you have to write an essay comparing the essay question to the story and your life. The papers you will write will be based off a location you will choose and you will use that location to write your papers for English and your speeches for Effective speaking. Make sure you choose a location in Brooklyn that has a lot of information on it because it will benefit you a lot in writing your essays and speeches. Take the advantage of the doing all the HW’s that involves you in writing a summary because it will really help you a lot in passing the class. For effective speaking make sure you follow the speech outline and time yourself saying your speeches and you should receive a good grade in the course. For the midterm and final exam for speech make sure you study for the exams because you may think it’s all common sense but it’s really not it’s a lot of information that you have to know. So remember don’t be lazy, be on your work, and don’t get distracted by anyone.

Sincerely ,

Brandon Jaspaul

Summary Of Project #4

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The Brooklyn Bridge is one of the most historical and valuable landmark in Brooklyn that has so much history behind it. I decided to talk about the reconstruction and construction about the bridge for project number 4. The construction of the Brooklyn Bridge was so long and arduous that it came out to be the world’s longest suspension bridge in world at the time. It led to so many benefits and achievements that classified it as one of the most valuable man made structure made in the United States. The Construction of the Brooklyn Bridge was made to satisfy the needs of the 19th century not the 21st century. The reconstruction is occurring because the bridge is no longer the eighth wonder of the world, though it holds historic significance, it holds little to no value to the average New Yorker. Ultimately the renovation is necessary to provide New Yorkers with full functionality; however it is arguable that the old bridge is causing interference of its potential as well as more expenses to the city for renovations instead of replacements. The Brooklyn Bridge will always be a great place to visit to see all the features it has to offer to you.

Work Cited:

Project #4 by Brandon Jaspaul

 

 

Tragedies on the Brooklyn Bridge Collide

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The Brooklyn Bridge is the first thing someone might think about Brooklyn and there are various reasons why. When we think of the Brooklyn Bridge all we see are the tangible features that it offers us. The events that occurred while developing the bridge and even after it was built are not visible to us which means many people are not aware of them. Thousands of New York residents cross this bridge every day yet not many would know of controversies that have occurred involving the Brooklyn Bridge. Two distinct stories lie in the death of John A. Roebling and the Stampede of 1883. One story revolves around the architect responsible of the Bridge and his death while the other story revolves a tragedy that could’ve been prevented. Both of these accounts have an aftermath and that can be either similar or different. These accounts provide meaning to what the Brooklyn is in its present day today. Being that we aren’t able to see the past events that occurred on the Brooklyn Bridge when we stand in front of it in person, we would have no idea what the past held. We would have no idea why the bridge is the way it is today, there is always a background story and the Brooklyn Bridge has various stories leading up to what it is today.

The man responsible for the Brooklyn Bridge was John A. Roebling. He planned to make the bridge the biggest suspension bridge during its time due to new ways of building suspension bridges[1]. After construction began, tragedy soon struck. Roebling, while being the architect was also assisting in building the bridge. He was on site one day taking compass readings on some pilings at a ferry slip. He wasn’t aware when the boat banged into the slip, his foot was violently caught on the pilings[2]. He was rushed to his son’s house in Brooklyn Heights, not too far from where the bridge stands today. There the doctors amputated his toes and all seemed to be fine. That was until he passed away three weeks later on due to an illness. The tragedy continued as the project resulted in serious sicknesses and deaths to various workers and Washington Roebling. Washington Roebling was John A. Roebling’s son who took over the project after his father’s death became very ill due to the working conditions of the bridge. He acquired decompression sickness and in 1879 he became completely disabled from it living the rest of his life in pain[3].

The Bridge was alas opened to the public on May 24, 1883. It took just 6 days for a tragedy to happen. The Bridge, being new was asked to be tested on its endurance by a man by the name of P.T Barnum. He proposed an elephant march along with various animals to promote his circus and at the same time prove to the public that the bridge was safe and stable[4]. He was denied this event but on May 30, 1883, a huge stampede was unleashed. On the day of May 30th, a women tripped and rumors spread throughout the bridge that it was going to collapse. This let out a huge fear among people as they rushed to get off the bridge, trampling people without care as their main goal was to save their own lives. No one trusted the bridge so when the rumors spread quickly throughout the bridge, a terrible stampede began. In the end, 12 people were trampled and 36 left injured[5]. The scene was terrible and controversy let out because if P.T Barnum would’ve been allowed to do his elephant march, this tragedy could’ve been prevented. The stampede could’ve been prevented because Barnum’s elephant march would prove to people that if the bridge was able to sustain large elephants and many other animals then it can sustain hundreds of people. After he did the march, the speculations were minimal.

These two accounts are surrounded by death and sorrow as the lives of innocent people were lost. That is what is similar between the death of the man responsible for the Brooklyn Bridge, John A. Roebling and the Stampede of 1883. Another similarity is that both of these events could’ve been prevented. The death of Roebling could’ve been prevented if he would’ve never been out on the work site as he was not a construction worker. The stampede could’ve also been prevented if P.T Barnum would’ve been allowed to perform his elephant march. The accounts differentiate in various ways. The death of Roebling was caused by machinery and the unawareness of his surroundings while the deaths of the stampede were caused by human beings trampling others to death. Another difference is the after math, after Roebling died, his son suffered from a severe life changing illness and workers died while a year after the Stampede, P.T Barnum was able to perform his march to prevent such event from happening again[6]. The difference lies in that the days after John A. Roebling’s death tragedy followed up with son and his employees and no positivity was seen while after The Stampede a man was able to change the mind of others and prevent an event like that from occurring ever again.

Now history can be defined as an argument on how we interpret the past[7]. This mean that many people view these accounts different as they can be viewed differently. Although both of these stories that revolve around the bridge are tragedies which have impacted the Brooklyn Bridge’s future in various ways, they are also controversial and occurred through different events. One had a positive aftermath while another resulted in further tragedies. It can be an example of how history can be found in years after an event occurred no matter how different or indifferent they may seem to be. Although the stampede resulted in positive things and improvements for the safety of people on the bridge, the death of John A. Roebling also allowed Washington Roebling to take over the project and create the beautiful bridge that we see before us today.

 

[1] “Today in History.” : June 12. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2013.

[2] “John Augustus Roebling – Great Buildings Online.” John Augustus Roebling – Great Buildings Online. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2013.

[3] “Smithsonian Civil War Studies: Biography – Washington Augustus Roebling – Civil War Engineer and Professional Civil Engineer.” Smithsonian Civil War Studies: Biography – Washington Augustus Roebling – Civil War Engineer and Professional Civil Engineer. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2013.

[4] “Ephemeral New York.” Ephemeral New York. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2013.

[5] “Topics in Chronicling America – Brooklyn Bridge; Fanfare and Fatalities.” Brooklyn Bridge; Fanfare and Fatalities. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2013.

[6] “Ephemeral New York.” Ephemeral New York. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2013.

[7] Geoffrey, Zylstra, 2013, New York City College of Technology

Works Cited

“Today in History.” : June 12. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2013.

 “John Augustus Roebling – Great Buildings Online.” John Augustus Roebling – Great Buildings Online. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2013.

 “Smithsonian Civil War Studies: Biography – Washington Augustus Roebling – Civil War Engineer and Professional Civil Engineer.” Smithsonian Civil War Studies: Biography – Washington Augustus Roebling – Civil War Engineer and Professional Civil Engineer. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2013.

“Ephemeral New York.” Ephemeral New York. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2013.

“Topics in Chronicling America – Brooklyn Bridge; Fanfare and Fatalities.” Brooklyn Bridge; Fanfare and Fatalities. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2013.

“Ephemeral New York.” Ephemeral New York. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2013.

Geoffrey, Zylstra, 2013, New York City College of Technology

INNOVATION TO THE GLORY

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While many historical buildings have been demolished during the growth of New York city there are a few that withstood the test of time and now stand as a reminder of how much value our history means to us. When the Brooklyn historical society was first erected, it was designed by an expert in his field and has continued to evolve beyond his expectations into a modern sustainable building open for all generations to visit and enjoy. Before its renovation in 1999 it stood for over 100 years. Proving the quality of work that went into it has payed off. When renovation started in 1999 changes had to be made to accommodate the changing times while maintaining the historical vibe to the building. Modern technology was integrated into the building to comfort the visitors efficiently. Just like the people with the thirst for knowledge who visit the library the building itself is expanding its reach into the possibilities of modern technology to reach out to the younger generations who wish to experience a piece of history.

The Brooklyn historical society is a library, which connects us to the 400-year-old history of Brooklyn. It was founded as Long Island Historical Society by Henry Pierrepont in 1863.  It is Located in the heart of Brooklyn in the neighborhood of Brooklyn Heights at the intersection of Pierrepoint Street and Clinton Street. It was listed on National Register of Historic Places Listings in Kings County, New York as National Historic Landmark in July 1991. Also the presence of Brooklyn Historic Society in the list of museums and cultural institutions in New York City makes it internationally known Historical and Cultural Monument. At its exhibitions, Brooklyn Historic Society hosts 9000 members of the general public and serves around 120,000 students and teachers by providing the educational tours every year.

George B. Post designed and constructed the Brooklyn Historical Society. The construction was completed in 1881. George B. Post, known for engineering skills like designing open-large spaces and construction of high storyed buildings. The first office building to use elevators “Equitable Life Assurance Society”, was designed by him. He’s also known for enormous sky-lighted hall of New York Produce Exchange. Also the buildings – World building and St. Paul were one of the tallest buildings in New York at the time of construction. Most of his designed buildings have been demolished. NYSE designed by him continues to be one of the intuitive ways to use steel support.

The design, construction and maintenance are three aspects of architecture, which makes the building a National Historic Landmark.  George B. Post completed Brooklyn historical society in 3 years. Post used terra cotta ornamentation on the façade in large scale in Brooklyn historical society building. An innovative truss-system was used to give the support to the ceiling of the central library.  For the first time locally produced terra cotta was used in buildings masonry construction. Olin Levi Warner sculpted the façade. He used the heroic characters of history. Post hired skilled crafts person to enhance the interior of the building. Library is decorated with carved black ash woodwork. Well-known artist Charles booth is believed to be the originator of stained glasses used in the windows of the building. Post himself designed the bronze hardware used in the building. Minton tiles are used throughout the building. An open galleried library was created by suspending the top floor of the building from iron trusses embedded in the roof. A special bridge technique was used to create the part of library.

A complete renovation of the Brooklyn Historical Society took over in 1999-2003 by Jan Hird Pokorny Associates. A climate control system was installed to preserve the historic collections. Restoration of the terra cotta facade and the roof was done.  The original bright red outlook of the facade was retained through cleaning & repair. High speed Internet was installed to enhance the usability of the library. Grandeur of the entrance was restored by the removal of the elevator, present in the middle of entrance staircase. Also the clock tower was renovated. The original gas lighting fixtures from 19th century retains its original decorative aesthetics. The restored Othmer Library maintains the historic essence of its old classic interiors with the introduction of new climate-control system for the preservation of its historical collections.

In 2012, announcement for renovation of the Brooklyn Historical Society was made and Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, Brooklyn Delegation of the New York City Council and the New York City Office of the Mayor made the funds available.  The architecture firm Christoff:Finio was given the renovation project to improve the visitor experience through redesigning the lower level & first floor of the library building.  The first floor will have new Reception Desk.  Redesigning of the lower level will result in expanded exhibition place.

The monumental main entrance has been redesigned to a tiled lobby with classrooms, information desk for the visitors, commercial retail spaces, and event halls. The event hall will be expanded to include 200 seating arrangements, controllable/programmable new lighting system, new chairs, tables, mobile stage & built-in Audio Video equipment’s. The space could be rented for programs & events. This project will take the Brooklyn Historic Society to a new platform.

Although there were three different individual involved during the renovation process over the couple of past years but they all had a very different kind of mind set and mentality about constructing or making changes to the magnificent place. For example: The Construction done by George B. Post emphasized more about the exterior architecture where as when the renovation in 1997 started the contractor also considered working in the interior part of the building. In conclusion, even though all of them had an distinct point of view on the building but all the changes done were to add more value to this prestigious location.

 

References:

 Brooklyn Daily Eagle(2013, Oct 17).Grande Dame of historical buildings now more seductive to public visits. http://www.brooklyneagle.com/articles/grande-dame-historical-buildings-now-more-seductive-public-visits-2013-10-17-123000

Jennifer Medina (2005, Aug 2005) http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/16/nyregion/16brooklyn.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

Brooklyn History under the category About Us http://brooklynhistory.org/