Taraboulous 1 Michael Taraboulous English 1001-009 20 September 2013

The field of study I am majoring in is engineering. To most people, understanding calculus and the concept of it is very confusing. For me, I understand things better in formulas than I do in words. So when reviewing articles written for engineers it was obvious that the discourse community they were focusing on was mathematicians and engineers. As with described in the article, Materiality and Genre in the Study of Discourse Communities, the authors Devitt, Bawarshi, and Reiff, argue, thatGenre allows students and researchers to recognize how lived textuality plays a role in the lived experience of a group (98). This applies to a field of study, such as my field of engineering. I am looking at industrial engineering at this time because I am interested in how companys can save money by innovative technology or just better business practices. I researched out industrial engineering articles and found an article called, Optimizing Inven tory and Pricing Policy for Seasonal Deteriorating Products with Preservation Technology Investment. Just the title would deter someone not in the field to shy away from this article. This article clearly is addressed to an engineer or company looking to save money on its inventory. investment. In reviewing the article, I could see key words that might only be understood by a businessman or an engineer. Devitt, explains that it would be unreasonable to try to use different terminology so that a non member of the discourse group might understand the article. Some of the key words I saw in

Taraboulous 2 the article was deteriorating inventory models, optimal, preservation technology, algorithm, market demand, and optimal solution. In reading the article, it wouldnt of had such creditability, (ethos), as if some of the words use was how to save money, instead of optimizing return, or reducing product deterioration by way of preservation technology. The article was broke down in the way that a scientist, and engineer would solve a problem. It had an introduction, reviews on the subject, notations and assumptions (very technical with formulas for EOQ model, on hand inventory, time demand models, and others), models, case studies and back up mathematical solutions to support the final conclusion. The next article I found was set up in the same format. It was an article on inventory replenishment and value of offering discount and trade credits called, An Inventory Model with Finite Replenishment Rate, Trade Credit Policy and Price Discount Offer. It contained words like graphical representation, EOQ model (making the assumption the reader knew what it is), constant demand, inventory model shortages, and finite replenishment/supply rate for constant demand. It also had the article set up with an Abstract, Introduction, Math Models (complicated formulas), and Concluding remarks. Just as Barwarshi gives the example of medical forms being set up for a doctor or nurse to look at, this article is set so that an engineer or mathematical genius can interpret what to do to save money in a company. The last article called, A Green Alternative to Insulation Materials was set up a little different, and was easier for someone outside the discourse community to understand, but it still had certain key words and terminology that might be difficult for a person outside than the intended discourse community to understand. It talked about the construction of the material using terms like dimensional lumber vertical, energy consumption rate, and kWHm and R2000

Taraboulous 3 building, assuming that the reader knew what it was. It didnt go into breaking the article into the complete scientific outline of running tests to prove a result, but it did include the object of the article, the testing conducted, and the results. It is clear to see that genre is set by the knowledge, expertise, and intelligence of what the discourse community holds. In order to communicate effectively to a group, one must know their audience and the disciplines of the group.

Taraboulous 4 Works Cited

"Auto Emotions Quantified." - ASME. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Sept. 2013. "A Green Alternative to Insulation Materials." - ASME. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Sept. 2013. "Optimizing Inventory and Pricing Policy for Seasonal Deteriorating Products with Preservation Technology Investment." Optimizing Inventory and Pricing Policy for Seasonal Deteriorating Products with Preservation Technology Investment. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Sept. 2013. Deviit, J. Amy, Bawarshi, and Reiff, Materiality and Genre in the Study of Discourse Communities STILL NEED TO GET PROPER CITATION