Who Killed the Electric Car Analysis Essay Example for Free

Who Killed the Electric Car psychoanalysis EssayWho Killed the Electric Car? is a powerful tool pertinent to many academic disciplines and universal to a variety of abilities, learning styles, and classroom goals. This rich, self-contained bring requires little or no supererogatory research on the part of the instructor or the class, but merchantman be procedured as the foundation for independent pupil research. The film divides neatly into two nearly equal and independent segments that can be sh consume on successive days or at polar points in a unit. twain segments offer excellent discussion opportunities.The classroom experience of students taking courses on environmental science or offerings that include a unit on crinkle quality or environmental concerns would be enriched by conceive Who Killed the Electric Car?. Courses that encourage interest in engineering and practical math applications would likewise benefit. The bully and civic questions that the film e xplores offer a natural connection for teachers working in the knowledge base of civics, giving medication, ethics, and blood line ethics. In many of these courses the film could be treated as a case study. The ethical questions raised are nearly unlimited and a large variety of higher-level- thinking activities can be highly-developed from the film.Included in this packet are discussion prompts, class activities, and research suggestions. 1 FILM digest included, the General Motors voltaic vehicle is featured. As this segment concludes, the success of the industrys legal dodging is symbolized by a celebrity-studded funeral for the galvanizing cable car. This segment is filled with factual analysis that examines conflicting claims abtaboo emissions, practicality, cost of various fuels, and consumer demand. Who Killed the Electric Car? is presented as a whodone-it mystery.Staying true to this genre, the film opens with necessary background information, describes the curse c ommitted, answering all of the what, where, and when questions, and then in the style of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle gathers the suspects for close scrutiny, coming to a conclusion on the guilt or innocence of each. The second half of Who Killed the Electric Car? is Sherlock Holmes at his best. The sevener suspects identified in the first half of the film are scrutinized. One by one, consumers, batteries, oil companies, political machine manufacturers, the U. S. brass, the California Air Resources Board, and the nakedest villain, the hydrogen car, pass under the bare bulb in the inspectors interrogation room in an attempt to answer the question asked in the films appellationWho Killed the Electric Car? At the end of each segment the featured suspect is judged as illegal or innocent. Opening with a bit of automotive write up that certifyes the electric car as a competitive alternative to the internal combustion engine, Who Killed the Electric Car? takes the viewer back to the begi nning of the twentieth century and the dawn of the automotive age. A straightforward explanation of why gasoline beats out electricity as the fuel of choice and how the internal combustion engine wins dominance concludes the broad overview.The film then moves to the recent past with the world of the California Air Resources Board and their 1990 finis to require that disco biscuit percent of all cars sold in California by each car manufacturer be zero-emission vehicles by the year 2003. The Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde response of automotive companies is revealed production and marketing of zero-emission cars is detailed, a period during which the legal and political team ups of the same manufacturers work to defeat the law that gave birth to modern electric vehicles.While several manufacturers are The film ends on a positive note, recognizing a grassroots movement that envisions cleaner air and naught independence. In a John Kennedy-style appeal, the film claims that those who solve our energy conundrum will be those that throw the world. 2 SELECTED SCENES FOR CLASSROOM REVIEW 119 1940 Two million new cars are sold in Television advertisement for G. M. s California each year. electric car. 255 2121 Cheap oil supports the combustion Introduce Dr. Alan Lloyd of C. A. R. B. engine over the electric car. 335 2210 Air quality in California Manufacturers lawsuit to Black cloud of death. overturn emissions standards.432 2230 Each gal of gasoline burned yields President Bush endorsing hydrogen 19 pounds of carbon dioxide. technology in the render of the Union. 455 2243 Introduce S. David Freeman. Hydrogen Hummer and the hydrogen highway. 740 2320 Creating demand for electric cars. C. A. R. B. hearing on the emissions standards. 850 2530 C. A. R. B. and Californias C. A. R. B. right to vote to kill the standards. zero-emission policy. 1240 2615 Cost to stomach an electric car equals Manufacturers start to collect gasoline when gas is 60 cents per gallon. the elec tric cars. 1410 2735 Californians Against Utility Save the electric car campaign, Company Abuse including the mock funeral. 1610 2930 G.M. claims to have built electric cars Last EV1 collected. according to demand. 1910 3120 Marketing How far, how fast, EV1s in a G. M. lot. how much? 3 3320 5036 G. M. spokesperson explains the funny Car Manufacturers fate of the collected EV1s. 3530 5620 PBS at the car crusher. Suspect Government 3658 10357 S. David Freeman, Were up against Suspect C. A. R. B. or so of the money in the world. 3715 10702 Vigil for the EV1s. Suspect Hydrogen Fuel Cell 3840 11108 Would you buy one of these electric President Bush at a hydrogen cars?Display check for 1. 9 million woof station. dollars offered to G. M. 3920 11505 Who controls the future? Last cars moved. He who has the biggest club. 11852 3934 1 Scene from Naked Gun 2 /2 Automotive Museum The stink of Fear. 4025 12030 List of suspects. Verdicts. 4058 12232 Suspect Consumers The crowd about the ele ctric car was quite simply a fight about the future. 4320 12358 Suspect Batteries Introduce James Woolsey and jadestone In America. 12719 4638 The one group of people that stairs Suspect Oil Companies up to take it on is the group that will change the world. 4 watchword PROMPTS.These prompts can be used for full-class discussion, small group conversations, or adapted for use as composing assignments of varying length and detail. What compromises related to cars and transportation are you willing to puzzle out to preserve and improve air quality? Brainstorm possibilities and then discuss each one, focusing on the average consumer. What one statement in the film do you disagree with? why? What one assertion in the film troubles you the most? Why? In your own lecture, explain why the car manufacturers collected and destroyed the electric vehicles. Did government serve the people in the case of electric cars?Why? Does government have the right to recite companies what to manufacture? Why? How important an issue is our nations dependence on oil? Explain. Do you agree that those who solve the energy question will change the world? Explain. Should the world oil append be divided evenly according to population, given to those able to pay the highest price, or reserved for underdeveloped nations? Explain your opinion. Is it acceptable for a nation to use oil as a weapon? Why/why not? Would you characterize each of the following as a secure citizen or a bad citizen?Why? -The oil companies -The automobile companies -U. S.consumers -Scientists researching hydrogen fuel -The citizens trying to save the electric car Is energy a national security issue? Why/how? Explain. How is the use of hydrogen as a fuel related to the reemergence of nuclear power? Does drilling for more oil in the pristine state of nature doctor sense? Why/why not? precondition the information provided in the film, do you conceptualise electric cars are a reasonable alterna tive to combustion engines? Why/why not? Given the information provided in the film, do you believe you will be able to buy a hydrogen-powered car in the next 10 years? 20 years? Ever? Why/why not?5 MOCK COURT Choose defense and pursuance teams for each of the seven defendants identified in the film. Have the teams prepare for a mock trial using the information in the film and if desired, redundant research. Stage a trial with a jury that has not seen the film. Roles Judge Acts as presiding officer maintaining order, firmness of purpose conflicts, and charging the jury. Prosecution team pass ons evidence against the named defendant using witnesses, charts, graphs, and physical evidence. The team would also cross-examine defense witnesses. The prosecutions job is to prove beyond a reasonable motion the guilt of the defendant.Defense team Presents evidence that rebuts the prosecutions view and may suggest alternative perpetrators. The defense may use witnesses, charts, graphs, and physical evidence. The team would also cross-examine prosecution witnesses. The defenses job is to pee reasonable doubt as to the guilt of the defendant. This activity can be used as an alternative assessment of student knowledge while also building critical thinking and oral presentation skills. 6 common land GOOD Open the activity by reading the paragraph below. Allow for a few legal proceeding of general comment on the concept of the common good and the claim by then G.M. chair Charles E. Wilson Whats good for the country is good for General Motors and vice versa. The preamble to the United States Constitution opens with the words We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, hold domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America. These words imply a common interest that is shared by citizens and government, a concept often referred to as the common good. In 1953, the then president of General Motors, Charles E. Wilson, was nominated by President Dwight Eisenhower to serve as his Secretary of Defense. During Wilsons confirmation hearings, senators were concerned that he would have encumbrance making a termination that could hurt General Motors, a major defense contractor, even if the decision was in the best interest of the United States. When asked this question, Wilson assured senators that he could make such a decision but that he could not imagine such a situation, because for years I thought what was good for the country was good for General Motors and vice versa. Student instruction Who Killed the Electric Car? implies that the common good is not being served by the decision to abandon electric vehicles and embrace hydrogen technology. Write your own definition of the common good. Make groups of 3 to 5 and share these definitions. Try to agree on a group definition. Evaluate General Motors decision to kill the electric car program in blowsy of your groups definition. Be ready to report your findings to the class. Do Mr. Wilsons thoughts from 1953 reflect the General Motors tidy sum that is presented in the film? If the Senate called the current president of G.M. to explain the death of the electric car, imagine what he qualification say that would be quoted more than 50 years later. 7 HIDDEN AGENDA Teacher introduction As a class, brainstorm about the term hidden agendum. When you get all the ideas on the board, make groups of 3 to 5. In groups, have the class discuss the ideas on the board and then write a definition of hidden agenda that the group can agree on. As a class, share these definitions and create one working definition for the whole class. Have students return to their groups and discuss what hidden agenda(s) the following may have had.To make a claim, the group must have at lea st one routine of solid evidence from the film. Each group should decide which three of their claims are the strongest and prepare to present them to the class. Present and discuss Automobile companies undercover agenda _____________________________________________________________________________________ Evidence Oil companies Hidden agenda _____________________________________________________________________________________ Evidence Filmmakers Hidden agenda _____________________________________________________________________________________ EvidenceCar companies Hidden agenda _____________________________________________________________________________________ Evidence Federal government Hidden agenda _____________________________________________________________________________________ Evidence Fans of the electric car Hidden agenda _____________________________________________________________________________________ Evidence C. A. R. B. Hidden agenda __________________________ ___________________________________________________________ Evidence 8 WHAT IS THE berth OF BUSINESS? What is the lineament of business in a democratic/capitalist society?The mixed fundamental interaction between business, government, and consumers is presented as a case study in Who Killed the Electric Car?. after viewing the film, clarify your own attitude toward the role of business, before any discussion, by using the prompts that follow. place the absolute list from 1, most important, to 10, least important, and then write proficient a sentence or two that explains each ranking. Using your results, make groups that include individuals with different attitudes. While you discuss the movie, analyze how different views of business influence opinions about the film. ______ The role of business is to make a profit.______ The role of business is to make a good product. ______ The role of business is to serve the consumer. ______ The role of business is to support government. __ ____ The role of business is to educate government. ______ The role of business is to educate consumers. ______ The role of business is to improve life. ______ The role of business is to cling to the environment. ______ The role of business is to provide consumers with choice. ______ The role of business is to invent solutions to societys problems. 9 WHAT IS THE ROLE OF GOVERNMENT? What is the role of government in a democratic/capitalist society?The complex interaction between business, government, and citizens is presented as a case study in Who Killed the Electric Car?. After viewing the film, clarify your own attitude toward the role of government, before any discussion, by using the prompts that follow. Prioritize the entire list from 1, most important, to 10, least important, and then write just a sentence or two that explains each ranking. Using your results, make groups that include individuals with different attitudes. While you discuss the movie, analyze how different vie ws of government influence opinions about the film. ______The role of government is to defend the nation. ______ The role of government is to create a just society. ______ The role of government is to cheer the consumer. ______ The role of government is to protect business. ______ The role of government is to regulate business. ______ The role of government is to educate consumers. ______ The role of government is to improve life for all citizens. ______ The role of government is to protect the environment. ______ The role of government is to provide consumers with choice. ______ The role of government is to invent solutions to societys problems. 10 qualification THE CASE.In the second half of Who Killed the Electric Car? , each of the suspects in this mystery is held up to scrutiny. playacting as an unbiased detective, develop a list of the evidence offered for guilt and the evidence that indicates innocence. In groups or as a class, use these evidence lists as the basis for a d ebate that leads to a vote on each suspect. The suspect___________________________________________________ Evidence to convict Evidence to acquit 11 BRIAN DANIELS teaches history and ethics at Hudson High School, Hudson, Massachusetts. He is the indoctrinate facilitator for the democratic school initiative at.Hudson High and an active member of the schools First Amendment Schools team. He has been teaching for thirty years and holds bachelors degrees in history and psychology from capital of Massachusetts College and a masters degree in critical and creative thinking from the University of Massachusetts at Boston. He will become the Curriculum Director for English and Social Studies grades 6-12 in the Hudson school district in the summer of 2006. He has been published several times in the Boston Globe and has an article slated for publication in October of 2006 in the National Social Studies.Supervisors Association magazine. A SONY PICTURES CLASSICS fall ELECTRIC ENTERTAINMENT PRE SENTS A DEAN DEVLIN/PLINYMINOR PRODUCTION A FILM BY CHRIS PAINE WHO KILLED THE ELECTRIC political machine? NARRATED BY MARTIN SHEEN EDITED BY MICHAEL KOVALENKO CHRIS A. PETERSON DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY THADDEUS WADLEIGH ORIGINAL MUSIC BY MICHAEL tolerate CONSULTING PRODUCER ALEX GIBNEY EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS DEAN DEVLIN TAVIN MARIN TITUS RICHARD D.TITUS PRODUCED BY JESSIE DEETER WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY CHRIS PAINE FOR BRIEF MILD LANGUAGE. WWW. WHOKILLEDTHEELECTRICCARMOVIE. COM WWW. SONYCLASSICS. COM.