Understanding the context in which an author creates something is the key to success. It is not enough just to have a general idea of the author, purpose, and audience. Each of these areas should be explored deeply in order to solidify the understanding of any given context.
My controversy involves the false advertisement of Lumosity, a company that promotes their "brain games" in order to improve cognition in daily life. The company has been accused of fudging research and promoting fake reviews of their product. Reporting on this issue should reach two major groups of people: subscribers of Lumosity/people looking to improve cognition and the neuroscience community. I have found that a large number of the subscribers of Lumosity are older. As people age, they look for ways to decrease the amount of cognitive decay. There is a personal stake for this group:mental health. They will definitely care to hear about how Lumosity can not actually prove their games work, especially with a hefty monthly/annual fee.
The other major part of the audience is the scientific community, especially in neuroscience. With many cutting edge sciences, it is important for research to be checked by other scientists all over the world. This aims to stop the spread of faulty information. The more legitimate the research, the more credibility the researchers involved gain. This is crucial for researchers in order to keep receiving funding. With such a large platform to disprove faulty research, the, over 700, researchers will be able to gain a lot of publicity for their own labs while helping people in the process.
My main purpose is to inform the audience of how Lumosity tried to take advantage of their consumers and emphasize the extent to which they were wrong. I know I should thoroughly explain how the research was done on both sides, in order to paint a clearer picture. The biggest or hardest aspect of my story I need to get across is the level of intention Lumosity had when selling their product. I would like to compare what they did to other companies that would sacrifice the legitimacy of the product in order to increase sales. This might require an explanation of the current capitalistic environment we live in. By the end of my essay, I want the reader to feel more aware when buying or using products, especially ones for personal health.
As a student that studies neuroscience in school and in my free time, I am extremely interested in how the brain works. That being said, I feel the opposite way towards people who would fake research in order to make more money. It becomes about the principle of the actions rather than the actual outcome. It is irresponsible, selfish, and misleading. All these personal feelings toward the subject allow me to really analyze the situation and gather as much information as possible. I also think it makes it easier to have a purpose for the essay. My understanding of the story and environment naturally form a purpose, stemming from the most weighted aspects.
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