What is the purpose of this blog?
This blog was created to provide general information about advancements in drilling techniques and technology. Looking forward to entering the petroleum industry, I would also like to keep myself informed about these advancements and increase my knowledge about the industry. Another purpose which this blog can serve as would be to arise interest in drilling for people who might not be quite sure about what exactly is the process of drilling or what it may incorporate.
Who is the imagined audience(s) of this blog?
The audience which I would expect to be reading my post most often would be someone is already has a relative amount of interest in the drilling industry or someone who is looking to enter the industry like myself.
in defining my purpose/audience this way?
So far, my posts have not quite matched the purpose of informing individuals about advancements in drilling. Rather, my first couple posts have been directed more towards providing somewhat of a background about drilling. These posts would relate more to someone who is not necessarily looking to become a part of the oil and gas business but someone who is curious about the process of drilling and oil well. The background post can be related to a wide range of audiences.
What can I do to encourage more reader participation with my blog?
Drilling is a very interesting method which can become complex in a hurry. There are many animation videos which show some of the drill bits or down hole tools in action. Posting some of these videos may capture a reader’s attention in a more effective way than my writing.
How can I expand my audience in this class? Outside of this class?
I could expand my audience similar to advertising. I could comment on other blogs attempting to relate the comment to my topic and posting a link to something on my blog which they might believe to be interesting. A simple method of word of mouth can be effective to attract people out of class to glance at my blog. Posting material which can be generally related could help influence others into commenting on a blog and keep them coming back to read responses from myself or others.
How would I characterize the tone of my blog?
For my first couple post, the tone of my blog seems to be informal in my opinion. My later posts may be more technical when talking about specific downhole drilling equipment and the tone may change into more of lecture or formal tone. My goal is to keep most postings informal however.
What do I hope to get out of writing this blog?
As I mentioned in my purpose, I would like to become more informed about the new techniques arising in drilling. Aside from that, I would also like to practice and become more efficient at transferring my knowledge about technical subjects such as drilling, to audiences in such a manner which they may easily understand and engage in the topic.
What would I like others to get out of it?
I hope others who read this blog will gain an interest as well as sufficient knowledge about the drilling industry to better understand operations of the oil companies and the complexity which goes beyond simply punching a hole in the ground. There are very strict regulations which drilling companies must follow as well as safety procedures and checks which must be conducted on a daily basis.
What are the strengths of my blog/my blogging?
So far, my blogging has been straight forward and simple in my opinion. I believe simplicity can be effective in many aspects as well as in blogging. The animation of the drilling rig set up seemed to capture some interest and attention of readers. I feel like more videos could be the way to attract a greater audience.
What are the weaknesses?
Drilling is a very broad discipline. When talking about a certain subject it is difficult to stay on topic and not switch into a completely different aspect of drilling. It is all tied together in some way but it will be slightly difficult to stay on topic and do not complicate the simplicity of the blog.
Have I used a deficit model in my writing, or something else? How would I know?
Providing back ground information makes it difficult to avoid the deficit model to an extent. I may have incorporated the model slightly but not to where it is obvious. If I were using the deficit model greatly, I would expect to not have comments which show interest or possibly comments with many questions showing that the reader did not capture any knowledge about the topic.
How have I characterized (implicitly or explicitly) science, engineering, and/or technology
in my blog?
In my first few post, I have presented engineering and technology in the drilling aspect as something truly remarkable. My posts about the rigs and the complexity which is incorporated in them presents an art in engineering.
How have I characterized myself?
I have characterized myself as someone who has great interest in drilling.
Self Evaluation #1
So far in Communicating Science, I have a total of 6 blogs on my page. My posts seem to be very lengthy but on topic. It is difficult to concentrate on communicating the material clearly to a variety of audiences which may be reading it throughout the whole blog. I find myself beginning my post with a wide range of audiences in mind but stray away from that as I begin to provide a large amount of information about the topic. I would like to become more efficient in providing this in terms which readers outside of the industry can relate to. My posts have been about types of drilling rigs and platforms, perforation techniques, expandable casing, and the general subject matter of my blog in my introductory post.
I have had few comments on my posts which limits my interaction with readers. The couple of comments which I did have on the types of rigs posts had several questions about the subject. I believe I clearly answered them in a timely manner as no further questions were asked. I am not quite sure how many comments I have posted on others students blogs. I would assume around 8 comments. When I comment, I have found out that I read the post and add a comment without paying particular attention to which blog I commented on. As the titles of the blog posts change on the commforge website as they are updated, I lose track of my comments. I will start noting of which blogs I comment on to better follow my discussions and questions which I pose to other blog writers in the class.
Aside from adding my opinion or question to other student blogs, this can help attract more readers to my blog site and possibly result in more comments which I would like to see. I really enjoy clarifying information which I am responsible for due to my lack in quality of communication or inconsideration for a range of audiences.
My blogs have little to no grammar errors which I can see. It is much easier for someone other than the author to find mistakes like these however. My style of the blog is very simple and clean. I believe readers can obtain more information and concentrate more on the posts when minimal distractions are present on the web page. In terms of media use, I have posted a video with all of my posts because drilling takes place thousands of feet underground. Seeing a visual of what is happening underground has helped me understand the concepts of drilling and will hopefully help and interest readers to do the same. Along with videos, I have included a couple of links for readers to further their knowledge on the subject if they desire to do so. The content of my posts have been mostly information rather than my opinion or encouraging interaction from my readers. I need to start to integrate more questions or comments leading towards opinions of readers about the topic or the blog itself.
Overall, I have met minimum requirements of posts and follow relatively closely with comments on other students blogs. I need to begin to keep track of my comments better as well as begin to engage my audience at a new level than I have been. I believe my performance so far is between a level of a “C” and a “B.” I would like to improve however as the semester progresses and be at a higher level within the proceeding weeks.
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