1. Hoshaw, Lindsay. “Afloat in the Ocean, Expanding Islands of Trash.” New York Times. 10 Nov. 2009. Web. 06 Feb. 2017

Background: A gyre is a term for a swirl or vortex caused by ocean currents. In one of these gyres off the coast of Hawaii, there is something called the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. This garbage patch is a mass of collected garbage. Be it cans, bottles, styrofoam, or tiny bits of plastic, it is all collected together in a mass that is roughly the size of Texas. The patch is harmful to surrounding wildlife, and must be dealt with.

How I used it: This article gave me important information on the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. I used it to study the size and physical makeup of the patch.

2.Kaiser, Jocelyn, Jocelyn Kaiser, and Science18 Jun 2010 : 1506. “The Dirt on Ocean Garbage Patches.” The Dirt on Ocean Garbage Patches | Science. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Feb. 2017.

Background: The great pacific garbage patch has been called a “trash vortex.” It is not the mucky collection of bulky garbage that many believe it is. Mostly it’s pellets of plastic. This is caused by the plastic breaking down in the ocean. The result is many animals dying from eating these pellets, thinking they are plankton or some other food.

How I used it: This source provided information on the most difficult issue in the Trash Patch problem, the Microplastics. I used this source to tell the facts about microplastics, and they are a main concern in the paper.

3. Marks, Kathy, and Daniel Howden. “The world’s rubbish dump: a garbage tip that stretches from Hawaii to Japan.” Http://agriculturedefensecoalition.org/. N.p., 5 Feb. 2008. Web. 19 Feb. 2016.

Background: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is mysterious. The garbage floats just below the surface, making it impossible to see on satellite imagery. While the patch stretches from between Hawaii and California, almost to Japan. There are stories of boats passing through the patch for over a week. The patch is a tough problem because we are unsure of exactly where it starts and when it ends, due to its near invisibility.

How I used it: I used this article because it told the story of the discovery of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The patch was only discovered in 1997, and that is a talking point in the paper.

4. “Baltimore Waterfront.” Waterfront Partnership. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 May 2017.

Background: The trash wheel is a paddle powered raft that floats around the Inner Harbor of Baltimore city. It is designed to clean up waterways. Last October, Mr. Trash Wheel picked up is one-millionth pound of trash. Since this, they released another Trash Wheel into the waters. These trash wheels have cleaned up the harbors in tremendous ways.

How I used it: This website has the specific numbers on the garbage that was picked up by Mr. Trash Wheel. I used these numbers to illustrate how such a simple idea can be so effective at stopping the litter in a particular area.

5. Layton, Julia. “Could We Clean Up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch?” Hoestuffworks Science. Howstuffworks, 04 Feb. 2010. Web.

Background: This essay-like article highlights past attempts to clean up the Great pacific garbage patch. It tells the things that were attempted, and it tells why they did not work.

How I used it: Illustrating why these other ideas did not work helped show the problems that need to be solved. By seeing what has gone wrong in the past, it was easier to see what needs to be done in the future.

6. “Ocean Trash: 5.25 Trillion Pieces and Counting, but Big Questions Remain.” National Geographic. National Geographic Society, 24 Mar. 2017. Web. 27 Mar. 2017

Background: This is a National Geographic article, so it is not as in-depth as a more science-oriented publication. This article uses the big scary numbers as a way to shock readers.

How I used it: The numbers in the article are in fact true, so if the goal is to shock readers, this article can be helpful. I used the article for the specific numbers on certain statistics.

7. Simmon, Robert. “What are Phytoplankton.” NASA. Earth Observatory. 13 July, 2010

Background: This is an informative article on the crucial role that phytoplankton play in the marine ecosystem. The phytoplankton are the base of any oceanic food web, and are pivotal to the survival of many species.

How I used it: The great pacific garbage patch can pose a threat to phytoplankton. I used the article to show why phytoplankton are important, yet another reason why the patch should be cleaned up.

8. Parker, Laura. “Eight Million Tons of Plastic Dumped in Ocean Every Year.” National Geographic. National Geographic Society, 14 Apr. 2015. Web 19 April, 2017

Background: This is another National Geographic article. This one focusses on statistics again, and specifically highlights which specific countries produce the most garbage, and where that garbage ends up.

How I used it: I used this article to show that no one country should be held responsible for the great pacific garbage patch. If multiple countries are responsible for the trash, they all should be responsible for cleaning it up.

9. Campbell, Colin. “Rank record: Mr. Trash Wheel gathers 1 millionth pound of trash from Jones Falls.” Baltimoresun.com. N.p., 20 Oct. 2016. Web. 19 Feb. 2017.

Background: This is a basic article on what Mr. Trash Wheel actually is. Its purpose is to inform readers on what the purpose of Mr. Trash Wheel is, and what exactly it is.

How I used it: The article gave me more insight on how Mr. Trash Wheel works. I knew it had something to due with solar power, and utilized the currents of the river, but i did not know specifically how.

10. MailOnline, Jenny Awford for. “No man is an island: British DIY Robinson Crusoe builds his own floating paradise off the coast of Mexico out of 150,000 recycled bottles – and now he’s found his Girl Friday!” Daily Mail Online. Associated Newspapers, 07 Nov. 2014. Web. 06 Feb. 2017.

Background: This article is about a man who constructed his own island. By using plastic bottles and layers of topsoil, he was able to create a floating island.

How I used it: I used this article to form the idea of my paper. The original direction of the paper used this idea as a solution for the garbage patch. After reading this article, it became clear that this idea was not the solution to the problem. This caused me to rethink my paper and take it in a new direction.

11. Goldstein, Jacob. “The Invention of ‘The Economy.’” Npr.org. NPR. 28 Feb. 2014. Web. 22 Jan. 2017.

Background: This article is all about how the economy was just something that was thought of recently. People did not understand the concept of national spending, and the effect that it would have on so many things.

How I used it: I used this article to show how the economy is not “real.” The economy is just a term used when describing the national trade statistics.

12. Friedman, Milton. “The Island of Stone Money.” The Island of Stone Money(1991): 3-7. Web. 22 Jan. 2017

Background: This article is about a group of people that live on the island of Yap. These people have a unique currency. The coins that are used on Yap are the size of a car, and they weigh thousands of pounds.

How I used it: This article was used to illustrate the abstract nature of currency in general. I drew parallels between the modern United States economy, to the stone money of Yap.

13. Glass, Ira, Chana Joffe-Walt, Alex Blumberg, and Dave Kestenbaum. “423: The Invention of Money.” This American Life. Prod. Planet Money. 7 Jan. 2011. This American Life. Web. 22. Jan. 2017

Background: This is some sort of podcast. It is about the question of “what is money?” They refer to the island of Yap, and its unique perspective on money. They conclude that money is a concept. It is just value that we assign on non-valuable things.

How I used it: I used this article to show how nebulous our idea of money is. Paper money actually has no value, but is coveted because of what humans believe about it.

14. Joffe-Walt, Chana. “How Fake Money Saved Brazil.” NPR. NPR, 4 Oct. 2010. Web. 22. Jan. 2017

Background: This is another podcast, and it is about the Brazilian economy. In the 1980’s, the Brazilian economy was in the toilet. Basically the solution was to slow the production of money, while slowly reinforcing the peoples’ thoughts about their currency. People needed to believe in the currency in order for it to work.

How I used it: This article was useful in helping me understand how fictional currency really is. In order for it to work, people need to respect it. With none of these beliefs in place, the money would be completely useless.

15. Katz, Mitchell H. MD. “Housing As A Remedy for Chronic Homelessness.” Jamanetwork. N.P, 3 Mar 2015. Web. 29 Jan. 2017

Background: The cure for chronic homelessness is to house the people first, then get them a job. According to this article, people are usually chronically homeless because of some sort of injury. These people are not lazy, but they need help. This strategy has shown great results for hundreds of people, and has improved their lives dramatically.

How I used it: I used this article in the assignment “a blow to the head.” The homeless people clearly need help, and are not lazy. Many people see a homeless person and immediately assume that they are lazy and choosing not to work. In fact, many of these people are unable to work due to chronic homelessness. This article showed me that this way of solving the issue can work.