The Perfect Diet

I like the lead and introduction for this article. It gets straight to the point, the "meat" of the story... Like other how-to articles we've read, this article is not bogged down by number after number reciting the calorie counts of various foods.

Instead, I feel the writer does a great job in utilizing sources. She has interviewed real experts and the quotes reveal a lot of information.

The structure of the article works well in that a reader can quickly maneuver to whichever tips they wish to read. However, it did seem a bit monotonous to me. I became bored and found myself skipping valuable information. The recipes at the end also don't seem to fit. I don't know how this looked in the magazine, but I feel these recipes may have been better suited as a different section or some kind of sidebar.

Lastly, I feel that the writer should focus more on the impact this diet has on running. What makes this diet specifically better in regards to a runner? I feel like she just says it works "well for runners" but doesn't explain why.

Healthy Guide To Eating Out

I really enjoyed how Sari Harrer begins this story. It's simple and yet I was able to picture a typical Norman Rockwell-era family depart for a restaurant dinner. Those who don't know who Norman Rockwell is may miss the point, but I'd say that's their loss. The story then goes into an average nut graf full of startling statistics and facts.

The structure of the article works very well for a how-to. Reader's should have no difficulty steering to topics which interest them most. The content is also informative and effectively displays how one should go about healthily eating out.

One issue I had with the article did involve the use of statistics. There were times (specifically in Step 2) where the numbers almost seemed to outnumber the words. It just seemed so hard to keep track of all these numbers as I was reading. There needs to be something here to ground the writing so the reader isn't lost in the numbers.

Story 2 Outline and Sources

1. Introduction
a. Anecdotal lead of Aaron Swaidner playing a record and describing the experience
b. Nut graf – Explains the vinyl record industry. Include record sales vs. CD/digital music sales. Why do artists still produce records?

2. Story Bulk
a. Background/history on vinyl records. How a record works.
b. Interviews with record store owners. Why do they sell vinyl? Preference on how music is played?
c. Interview with musician who actually sells their music on vinyl.
d. Info on audiophiles who prefer vinyl records

3. Conclusion
a. Answer why records are still sold; better sound quality? Artwork? Listening experience? All of the above?
b. Return to Aaron Swaidner

SOURCES

Aaron Swaidner - Student who collects and regularly listens to vinyl records
Andy - Owner of Tracks, a record store in Bloomington.
Owner of another record store (i.e. Landlocked, TD's)
Mike Adams - Musician and founder of XRA Records

The End Of Men

This story opens with a lead describing scientist Ronald Ericcson's work on sperm selection methods. The lead does a great job of getting the reader's attention. I didn't get the impression that this article was about Ericcson though (which it isn't). This introduction is interesting, but I feel like it's length is a bit strained. Perhaps other info on Ericcson can be spread throughout the story. Finally after dwelling on Ericcson, Hanna Rosin states that, "Man has been the dominant sex since, well, the dawn of mankind. But for the first time in human history, that is changing—and with shocking speed." I felt like this was almost a worthless sentence. I gathered this throughout the introduction and didn't need retold.

Like the other Atlantic article we read, Beating Obesity, this contains a lot of information and statistics. Unlike Beating Obesity, I had more difficulty reading every line in this article. I caught myself skimming through the facts and figures. I hardly thought it was an uninteresting subject; as a man, I'm kind of worried now. I really just feel like this article could have been much shorter and still been just as good of quality if not better. I understand the Atlantic may feature more long-form stories, but this one seemed a bit too long for me.