March 25, 2018

Re: Software Engineer

To Whom It May Concern:

I’m writing this letter to express my interest in a software engineering position at Cache Ventures. In reading about the company on your homepage, I have become genuinely interested in working with other talented individuals to invest in products that will be of much of use and entertainment to consumers. You have my caught my attention with original ideas that are new and innovative. I currently hold a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from Stony Brook University. I do believe that this degree has taught me everything I will need to know in the tech industry. I have learned to code many different kinds of projects in languages such as Java and C, along with learning system fundamentals and taking theoretical CS courses such as Theory of Computation.

Along with holding this CS degree, I have also interned at Northrop Grumman over the summer of 2018. Interning here was a great experience. I worked with very talented software engineers and data analysts who taught me a lot about the industry as a whole and how to be a valuable asset to any job. It was also very convenient, as Grumman is only a two minute drive from my house. Interning has given me great experience in the field, but I do also believe that working at ShopRite for four years has taught me how to be a patient and approachable employee. It could get quite stressful when the store got overcrowded with customers, but I always learned to remain calm and always friendly to the customers.

I am excited about this opportunity to demonstrate my skills and work hard for this company. Please find my resume enclosed for your review. Thank you for your consideration, and I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Andrew Ferruzza

I read “Do Not Read This Editorial While Walking” by Clyde Haberman. In this article, posted in the New York Times on March 17th, 2018, Haberman reviews the recently introduced law to Montclair, California, which makes it illegal to cross the street while on your phone, listening to music, or distracted in any other way. The law was put into place because officials have decided that there have been too many pedestrian deaths solely due to the fact that these pedestrians were not paying attention to oncoming traffic and instead decided to bury their noses in their phones/other devices. In writing this article, the author uses a few different rhetorical strategies to get his message across. First, there is a bit of comedy added into the piece, as Haberman calls the pedestrians “cellphone zombies” two times and claims that it makes it harder for drivers to not get into accidents when “pedestrians go around stoned” (1). Of course he is exaggerating with these comparisons, but in looking at pedestrians crossing streets, these comparisons actually start to make some sense. Along with the comical comments, Haberman backs up claims of pedestrian deaths with pure facts by reciting the increase in traffic deaths since 2014. In one paragraph, he even mentions the fact that states with legalized marijuana tend to have increased pedestrian deaths. So his joke about stoned pedestrians may not be much of a joke… Another interesting part of this article is the very first paragraph, when Haberman commands us to stop reading the article if we are walking outside (1). This attention-grabber works extremely well because it winds up relating to the theme of the article as a whole.

I think it’s clear that Haberman’s message here is for pedestrians to pay more attention while walking outside and crossing streets. He is certainly agreeing with the law that was put into place here in Southern California, and also seems anxious to see what happens in other states.

For the argumentative essay, I will take a look at the claims that rock music is a dying genre, and make an argument that it is certainly not dying, just evolving into something else. While it may be dying in sales, the music itself is still played worldwide. It still makes its way into the mainstream, sometimes being fused into electronic or pop music. For evidence, I can cite certain rock bands that still have a wide mainstream audience to this day (Foo Fighters, for example), and show how their music is actually very popular. I also will look to talk about current rock bands who are pushing the boundaries of music and creating new sounds. I chose this topic because I am a fan of rock music myself, and I discover new, talented bands all the time. So when people say that it is a dying genre, it amazes me because there are so many great new rock bands out there, you honestly just have to know where to look (Spotify’s recommended artists is great). I also think it’s important to discuss because music today is dominated by EDM and hip-hop music, which is by no means bad music, but pretty soon, people will be looking for something fresh. This is always a trend in popular music. Usually, the music that becomes popular at a certain time is the music that teenagers at the time listen to. Rock became popular in the 60s because every teen was into it (Woodstock). Rock was popular again in the 90s because every teen was jamming Nirvana. EDM music is popular today because every teen listens to it. This is another subject I’ll bring up in my paper. The biggest counterargument is probably the most prevalent statistical fact that rock music just doesn’t sell as much anymore. But the truth is, it doesn’t matter about sales.