Kyrie Hoover ENG 1102

250 word summary: The figured world we chose to observe is the student union, specifically the circle in the middle. The union is a place where students come to engage in a number of activities. These include eating, studying, meeting up with friends, working on projects, or simply hanging out. It is usually a laid back atmosphere where there is a lot of talking, but it's usually not overwhelmingly loud. Sometimes there are special events that take place in the union, this range from organizations having a booth set up, to some kind of game taking place, to a dance crew breaking it down. As for the rules in the union, there really aren't any. Any numbers of different activities are acceptable, such as the ones listed above. People communicate there mostly through talking, but also with cell phones and computers. Loud noises are common in the union because many people are talking at once. Some inappropriate behaviors would include maybe fighting, or doing something outrageous like getting naked. The most popular discourse community will obviously be students meeting to chat, but others could include staff who works there, professors discussing professional things, Greek organizations planning things, or other organizations hosting events. Due to the location of the union (the middle of campus) it is a prime spot for people to go whether passing through, meeting up with others, or doing homework. Some artifacts that I would expect to see there would include phones, books, computers, and food. Many people pass through the union throughout the day which makes it a perfect spot to observe various types of people within communities.

Observation Notes: 1. Friday February 8th, 2013 (6pm): It is the start of the weekend and the atmosphere is more relaxed, and excited that the week is over People are not really doing homework, probably because they figure they have all weekend to do it There are groups of students coming from the gym, as well as people going to and from Crown or Wendys Students here to meet up with friends, discussing plans for weekend The two main forms of communication taking place are people talking, carrying conversation, or people texting Some object artifacts include cell phones, backpacks/purses, and computers One idea/concept artifact that is noticeable is school spirit people wearing clothes that support our school There is a convention taking place on the 3rd floor: NCARH For this convention people are dressed up from medieval times, some people are carrying trophies or swords, and wearing crowns. These items would be artifacts specific to this discourse community They are also speaking in some terms from medieval times: type of discourse It is obvious that people come here within cliques Some of these include: Gym goers, the NCARH people, skaters, Greek life participants, nerds, and girls who like to gossip Gossip is actually very common in the union

It is a social atmosphere (at least today it is) People come here dressed casually, there is not one specific way to dress Diversity is apparent here: different languages being spoken Today, most people seem to be coming with the sole intent of eating There is a movie playing, people coming to watch that As it got later, the union started to empty out, people were going to do stuff for the night, such as go off campus and/or party

Interview with guy from NCARH convention Q: Why are you here? A: I am here with WCU, participating in the NCARH convention taking place upstairs. Q: So, what is NCARH? A: NCARH is a weekend long convention that aims at unifying different colleges located in North Carolina. This year the theme is medieval, every year there is a different theme. Q: What kinds of programs take place during this weekend? A: Well, right now we are participating in a scavenger hunt, to find the UNCC pix axes. There are fun events as well as sessions where different things are talked about, one topic is hall council. They relate to college life. Q: Could anyone attend NCARH? A: Yeah, it involved an application and you had to pay for it, but there werent restrictions on who was able to come. Some of the colleges that are represented

this weekend include: WCU, Duke, Appalachian State, Highpoint, UNC Wilmington, NC State, and of course UNCC.

2. Sunday February 10th, 2013 (7pm) The union is dead! The majority of people here are at Wendys People only really come on Sundays to eat, commuters are not on campus, and a lot of students commute Another artifact would be food, especially Wendys or Mama Leones The most noticeable group present is sorority girls coming for their chapter meeting, they are dressed nicely and talking about things pertaining to their particular sorority The atmosphere would definitely be more lazy, laid back Everyone is bumming it wearing sweats or pajamas Probably a majority of these people just woke up even though it is late in the evening, everyone tired from the weekend A couple guys with nerf guns came in, there may be a game going on Still a lot of phone use going on, texting, talking on phone Nothing exciting really going on Dialect: its pretty quiet, not many people talking, some small talk going on Most people are just passing through the union, to get in and out, maybe to go to their dorms, not many people are there just to be there The weather is making everyone sleepy: dark, cloudy

3. Monday February 11th, 2013 (3:30pm) Today is the beginning of another week! There is a lot more energy at the union, a loud environment, more upbeat People are talking, hanging out, meeting with friends Today the union is a big meet-up spot An artifact would be umbrellas due to the rain Concept/idea: Stressed about it being the beginning of the week, no one likes Mondays Students doing last minute homework Faculty here discussing things professionally People here speaking foreign languages, shows the diversity of campus People going to/from Crown Group of students in the middle telling stories very loudly, laughing, gossiping! More people are on their computers, probably because of homework Some people here to rest between classes, people even sleeping here There is a booth set up for My Sisters Keeper (step team) they are selling valentines, but not successfully due to their bad reputation Students catching up, telling each other about their weekends Group of guys in suits Around 4, a lot of people leave, probably to go to class

Interview with Student (Deocia McClean, freshman): Q: Why do you usually come to the Union? A: Food! Most of the time to eat, or just for leisure, to relax and hang out with friends. Q: Would you say that this is the main area for socializing on campus? A: Yes, because it is in the middle of everything, so the location in perfect, and its near classes also Q: How often do you come to the union per week? A: Everyday! Q: Do you find that it gets too loud or distracting here to be able to get any work done? A: It depends on which level youre on. People dont really follow the rules, but the first floor is always the loudest. The third floor is usually really quiet so it would be easy to work there. Q: If you could use one word to describe the union, what would it be? A: Huge! It is the biggest student union I have seen! Q: Do you think it is easy to meet new people at the union? A: It depends on the type of person you are, it can be very easy to socialize with new people here because everyone will just meet up and talk to each other.