Saturday, November 30, 2019

Psychology Issues Say Not to Psychiatry

Say Not to Psychiatry focuses on detrimental effects of psychiatric treatment to both individual and society. However, the article discusses the issue from an unusual, unpredicted angle, heavily criticizing all current methods and approaches to treating mentally impaired people (Say No to Psychiatry: Site Index, 2007). In fact, such a criticism is not sufficiently grounded because no specific evidence is provided to support the thesis.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Psychology Issues: Say Not to Psychiatry specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More For treating a moderate anxiety disorder, the psychiatrists use minor tranquilizes, such as Valium, or diazepam, which is frequently prescribed by American doctors. Librium and Xanax are among the most popular drugs after Valium. Apart from medications, psychiatric therapy is of great value as well. When a person has a serious eating disorder, he/she feels overwhelmed with issu es connected to food consumption, dieting, and weight gain. In addition, there are also physical signs of the disorder, such as underweight or overweight, constant irritation, inappropriate reaction to the questions about food, inadequate assessment of their physical appearance. After the rehabilitation period, former substance addicted individuals should be regularly monitored for about three month before they get down to work. The monitoring should be held weekly and be accompanied by regularly meetings with counselors who should evaluate the psychological and emotional stability of the patient. Specifically, the role of counselors consists in defining the problems and behaviors that addicts usually encounter while fighting with their dependency. The rehabilitation period for substance addicted individuals is involved into a criminal justice program. Therefore, people who abuse drugs and alcohol because legally responsible for any violations in the workforce. In this respect, the counselor also becomes liable for the decision he/she makes and, therefore, if the client is allowed to return to his former job position, it means that the counselor takes responsibility for his/her client actions.Advertising Looking for essay on psychology? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Under the auspices of the World Health Organization, the passive-aggressive behavior is identified as Axis II personality disorder. According to DSM-IV, passive-aggressive personality is characterized by overtly ambivalent actions, endless conflict with others, as well as disappointment with everything these individuals do. The individuals with this disorder largely depend on conflict and desire to self-assert themselves. Ascetic people do not expose significant mental deviations because their goals in life are more connected with philosophical and ideological perspectives. However, people who are too obsessed with this lifestyle and pay ex treme attention to their food preferences could be regarded as mentally ill. Huntington’s disease does not have any cure, and the available therapy is possible only to reduce the severe development of some of the symptoms. Medications could also be involved to treat some psychiatric treatments. Within this context, many employment issues could be considered. Specifically, some employees offer insurance, as well as medical care. Long-term disability payment ensures income for impaired people as well. Childhood disintegrative disorder belongs to the group of autism spectrum disorder. Nevertheless, some cases of childhood disorder demonstrate considerable regression after some period of normal development, as well as a tangible loss of certain skills, as compared with children suffering from autism. Additionally, childhood disintegrative disorder has a latent period and, therefore, it develops much later. There is a close relationship between attributional style, as well as a ra nge of measures for treating stress disorders. In this respect, the counselors should impose positive thinking on people with stressed disorder to make them more concerned with positively oriented issues. Reference Say No to Psychiatry: Site Index. (2007) Web.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Psychology Issues: Say Not to Psychiatry specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More This essay on Psychology Issues: Say Not to Psychiatry was written and submitted by user Frankl1nR1chards to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Tuesday, November 26, 2019

Free Middle School Science Fair Projects

Free Middle School Science Fair Projects Its hard enough to come up with a middle school science fair project, but its even more challenging to find one that wont cost you any money. Heres a selection of ideas for middle school science fair projects that use materials you likely already have on hand or else allows you to collect data from free sources. For a middle school project, try to propose a hypothesis and design an experiment to test it. Choose a project you can do fairly quickly so that you will have time to work on the report or poster. Do you have a pet? Devise an experiment to determine whether it can see in color or is right/left pawed, etc. If you have multiple pets, see if their handedness is related to gender (male or female).  Do any household chemicals repel (or attract) insects?What ratio of vinegar to baking soda produces the best chemical volcano eruption?What type of plastic wrap prevents evaporation the best? Is plastic wrap more effective than aluminum foil?What plastic wrap prevents oxidation the best?What percentage of an orange is water?Are night insects attracted to lamps because of heat or light?Do white candles burn at a different rate than colored candles?Does the presence of detergent in water affect plant growth?Can a saturated solution of sodium chloride still dissolve Epsom salts? Can it still dissolve sugar?Does magnetism affect the growth of plants?How does the shape of an ice cube affect how quickly it melts? What effect does size have?Do different brands of popcorn leave different amou nts of unpopped kernels? Can you determine how long it takes people to fall asleep? What factors affect how quickly they fall asleep?How do differences in surfaces affect the adhesion of tape?If you shake up different kinds or brands of soft drinks (e.g., carbonated), will they all spew the same amount?Are all potato chips equally greasy? How about chips made from other vegetables (e.g., beets, sweet potatoes)?Do the same types of mold grow on all types of bread? Does the same mold grow on bread as on tortillas?Does light effect the rate at which foods spoil?Can you use a household water filter to remove flavor or color from other liquids?Does the power of a microwave affect how well it makes popcorn?Compare labels on foods. Is the nutritional content of different brands of a vegetable the same?How permanent are permanent markers? What solvents (e.g., water, alcohol, vinegar, detergent solution) will remove the ink? Do different brands/types of markers produce the same results?Is laundry detergent as effecti ve if you use less than the recommended amount? More? Do all hairsprays hold equally well? Equally long? Does type of hair affect the results?What effect do additives have on the crystals? You could add food coloring, flavorings, etc.What steps can you take to maximize crystal size? You can affect vibration, humidity, temperature, rate of evaporation, purity of your growth medium, and time allowed for crystal growth.How do different factors affect seed germination?Is a seed affected by its size? Do different size seeds have different germination rates or percentages? Does seed size affect the growth rate or final size of a plant?How does cold storage affect the germination of seeds?What conditions affect the ripening of fruit?How are different soils affected by erosion? You can make your own wind or water and evaluate the effects on soil. If you have access to a very cold freezer, you can look at the effects of freeze and thaw cycles.How does the pH of soil relate to the pH of the water around the soil?How effective are natural pest det errents?

Friday, November 22, 2019

Quotes from Anti-Slavery Activist Angelina Grimké

Quotes from Anti-Slavery Activist Angelina Grimkà © Angelina Grimkà © and her older sister Sarah Moore Grimkà © were born to a slaveholding family in Americas South. They became Quakers, and then became antislavery and womens rights speakers and activists - in fact, they were the only white Southern women known to be part of the abolitionist movement. Grimkà ©s family was prominent in Charleston, South Carolina, society, and were major slaveholders. Angelina was the youngest of fourteen siblings and was always closest with her older sister, Sarah, who was thirteen years older than her. As a teenager, she began her first anti-slavery activities by teaching her familys slaves about religion. Her faith became a major part of the foundation of her abolitionist views, believing that slavery was an un-Christian and immoral institution, although other Christians of her time had found Bible verses and interpretations that they could claim supported slavery. Because of the way that her fellow Presbyterian endorsed slavery, Grimkà ©s abolitionist beliefs were not welcomed, and she was expelled from the church in 1829. She became a Quaker instead, and realizing that she would never be able to change the beliefs of Southern slaveowners, she and Sarah moved to Philadelphia. Even the Quakers slow reform proved too gradual for Angelina, and she became involved in the radical abolition movement. Among her most famous published letters was An Appeal to the Christian Women of the South, published in 1836 to try to persuade Southern women of the evils of slavery. She and her sister Sarah both became abolitionist speakers throughout New England, sparking new discussions (and controversies) about womens rights as well as abolition. In February 1838, Angelina addressed the Massachusetts State Legislature, defending the abolition movement and womens rights to petition and becoming the first American woman to address a legislative assembly. Her lectures drew some criticism, as she pointed out that passive complicity, not just active slave-owning, propped up the institution of slavery, but she was generally respected for her eloquence and persuasiveness. Even after Grimkà ©s health declined in later years, she still corresponded with activist friends and continued her activities on a smaller, more personal scale. Selected Angelina Grimkà © Quotations I recognize no rights but human rights I know nothing of mens rights and womens rights; for in Christ Jesus there is neither male nor female. It is my solemn conviction that, until this principal of equality is recognized and embodied in practice, the church can do nothing effectual for the permanent reformation of the world.Women ought to feel a particular sympathy in the colored mans wrong, for, like him, she has been accused of mental inferiority, and denied the privileges of a liberal education....thou art blind to the danger of marrying a woman who feels and acts out the principle of equal rights...Hitherto, instead of being a help meet to man, in the highest, noblest sense of the term, as a companion, a co-worker, an equal; she has been a mere appendage of his being, an instrument of his convenience and pleasure, the pretty toy with which he whiled away his leisure moments, or the pet animal whom he humored into playfulness and submission.Abolitionists never sought place or po wer. All they asked was freedom; all they wanted was that the white man should take his foot off the negros neck. Slavery always has, and always will, produce insurrections wherever it exists, because it is a violation of the natural order of things.My friends, it is a fact that the South has incorporated slavery into her religion; that is the most fearful thing in this rebellion. They are fighting, verily believing that they are doing God service.I know you do not make the laws, but I also know that you are the wives and mothers, the sisters and daughters, of those who do.If a law commands me to sin I will break it; if it calls me to suffer, I will let it take its course unresistingly. Selected Sources Grimkà ©, Angelina (1836). An Appeal to Christian Women of the South. http://utc.iath.virginia.edu/abolitn/abesaegat.html Grimkà ©, Angelina (1837). Letter to Catharine Beecher.  Quoted in American Political Thought: New York: W.W. Norton, 2009. Grimkà ©, Sarah Moore (1838).  Letters on the Equality of the Sexes, and the Condition of Woman: Addressed to Mary S. Parker. Archive.org. Weld, Theodore Dwight, Grimkà ©, Angelina, Sarah Grimkà © (1839). American Slavery As It Is: Testimony of a Thousand Witnesses. https://docsouth.unc.edu/neh/weld/weld.html

Thursday, November 21, 2019

Finale Paper Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words - 1

Finale Paper - Assignment Example Among these three ethical theories, deontology provides the best response because it treats patients as autonomous ends who have the right to make end-of-life decisions, but it avoids the slippery slope of justifying suicide and considers rules that should guide moral end-of-life decisions. Rule utilitarianism argues that people have a right to end-of-life decisions if it offers the greatest net good for the majority. Rule utilitarianism evaluates end-of-life decisions through assessing the kinds of acts involved and the emphasis on the act that results to the greatest good for the greatest number of people (Mosser, 2013, p. 6.1). First, it considers that being able to decide one’s death is good if it saves resources because the health care system is already burdened with high costs due to limited medical and human resources (ForaTv, 2010). Second, rule utilitarianism adds the happiness of the patient to the total net good of the majority if he/she volunteers to end his/her life with respect to insufficient health care resources for the public. His/her happiness becomes part of the total happiness of more people. Rule utilitarianism values the net good and happiness that end-of-life decisions can provide to society. The strengths of rule utilitarianism in answering the question are that it considers the effect of end-of-life options to the good of the majority, which is essential in a society with limited and expensive health care resources, and that it does not treat these options as taboo because they can also contribute to net good and happiness. First, rule utilitarianism gives importance to the reality of limited and costly health care resources. It allows stakeholders to find public benefits in sacrificing human life. Second, it removes negative conceptions that see euthanasia as immoral because, if it can produce

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Tattoos and Body Piercing Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Tattoos and Body Piercing - Research Paper Example It might also be acquired to represent the rebellion against the status quo or those in authority for instance teenagers worldwide get tattoos and body piercings to express their disobedience to their parents who are rarely fond of these activities. The modern day tattooing is made a lot easier, thanks to scientific development and new laser technologies. One of the forms of body art, which has descended down from ancient times and successfully transited in the cultures of modern times, is henna art. Made of natural herbs, it is used to decorate hands and feet of women in eastern cultures on their weddings and other occasions marking rites of passage. However, most people, more significantly in the west, have proceeded to tattoo culture to show their rebellion to status quo and express their opinions with more freedom and aggression (Sawyer, 97). However, as easy as it is recent times to get a piercing or tattoo, the hazards it causes to health cannot be over emphasized. First, it be ing a permanent body art, removing a tattoo may be difficult and very expensive since it involves the use of high-tech instruments. Second, the tattoos are highly prone to infections and skin allergies. The red dye used in tattoos usually causes rashes, sometimes years after getting a tattoo. The infections caused by tattoos are mainly bacterial and appear as sores and pus-like forms. Often, granulomas, a bump-like structure, form around the tattoo due to the ink dye used. In addition, and most dangerously of all, tattoos makes the immune system more prone to blood borne diseases i.e. if the tools used for carving the tattoos contains smears of infected blood, then the individual is on a high risk of developing chronic illnesses like... This essay approves that people are now adapting to the new trends and employers are learning to focus on more important things than the body art of contestants such as their expertise, additional skills, and ability to contribute to the mission of organization. This drastic change in the attitudes of people towards these once-judges practices is sometimes attributed to the globalization. The whole world has come together in a form of a global village and people from diverse backgrounds have come to know each other and learn from each other. In times like these, it is difficult to judge others in comparison to ‘self’ and not accept the diversity amongst different types of people. In addition, in such a compact atmosphere it is very likely to trade expertise, inspirations, beliefs, and practices. This report makes a conclusion that the media owes a big credit in this regard. Globalization has more or less just strengthened the bond amongst people from diverse backgrounds. It is the media and its undying influence that brought people together in the first place. The rapid progress in the world of information and technology and more importantly the internet boom is highly responsible in the conditioning of people to accept and regard other people and the differences between them. Those who were too stubborn before to give respect to individuals who had gotten themselves pierced in the tongue or forehead are now beginning to accept the differences and treat them like equals rather than being intimidated or disgusted, as before.

Saturday, November 16, 2019

Video games good or bad Essay Example for Free

Video games good or bad Essay Are Video Games Good For You, by Steven Berlin Johnson a author and writer of numerous magazine articles. Johnson has stirred academia and parents alike by professing that video games have a place in education. Johnsons views on video games are so out of the mainstream most people dismissed his assertions without much thought. His ideas seemed to find traction though when he wrote his book on the subject advocating a controversial view point video games are good for you. Johnson makes a simple claim that video games can be beneficial. Is it possible the biggest distracter of teenagers and college students in America, could actually be doing some good? There are numerous studies on video game play and the amount of time people spend on them, especially our youth. Many previous studies do not reflect Johnsons view point. So, are video games educational, or just another distraction to traditional education and parents? Johnson argues that video games not only attract kids through sex and violence. He claims people are drawn to the structure and sense of adventure. Johnson contends that certain parts of the brain are stimulated that actually make you crave conquest. Johnson claims that video games are so complicated, filled with problem solving and realistic scenarios that they must be doing something positive. He asserts that television has some of the same characteristics as video games. The most debased forms of mass diversion video games and violent television dramas and juvenile sitcoms turn out to be nutritional after all, Johnson writes. They offer an increasingly rigorous cognitive workout. Whats more, the mental skills they hone are just as important as the ones exercised by reading books.(pp. 381-394 ). Johnson continues throughout his article to bring scientific data to light on the subject, but it does not convince this writer that video games are good for you. Johnson does not take all the blame on that data because there really isnt much available on the subject. Johnson tries to take liberty with IQ scores on the rise over the last few years but that is a stretch in his attempt link it to video game play. Johnson ignores any data that conflicts with his position, such as better education techniques or more access to information through the use of the internet. Inquiring deeper in the area of study, there seems to be quite a bit of data that Johnson doesnt mention in his article. Studies reveal that there is a great deal of harm caused by extended video game play. Links have been made to aggressive behavior and even physical altercations to video game play. Parents have nothing but complaints about video games. Most parents want their children to play the traditional way, outside. Parents also have a hard time getting children to do anything else when a video game takes over. Johnson himself backs away from his own argument when he makes statements like dont stop reading books or do not depend on video games for your entire education. Johnson has caused me to explore the idea that video games are more than just a distraction, but in the end they are not best way to educate our children-they are a distraction. References Johnson, S. (2012) Why Games Are Good For You, From Inquiry to Academic Writing, pp. 481-494Ã'Ž

Thursday, November 14, 2019

Social Responsibilities :: essays research papers fc

Social Responsibilities: 1.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Health Aspect a.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Find better ways to cut down on fat and calories Is Starbucks adding to the growing weight problem with American society? You be the judge. I personally was shocked at the nutritional facts on their products (Figure 1). Some fast food places offer healthier products than some of the Starbucks products (Figure 2). The nutritional facts circled in red in figure 1 and figure 2 shows that one cup of Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Crà ¨me with whip is less nutritional than an entire meal at McDonalds. Imagine what the nutritional facts would look like if you included a Classic Coffee Cake with your coffee beverage! (Figure 1.2)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Starbucks nutritional values listed below are not completely accurate as shown in the following statement: â€Å"The nutrition information for beverages is based on Starbucks ® standardized beverage recipes. Because each of our beverages is handcrafted and may be customized, some variation can be expected. The data is calculated using ESHA Research’s Genesis ® R&D software. All data is rounded to meet current United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) packaged foods labeling regulations.† Works cited: (http://www.starbucks.com/retail/nutrition_info.asp) This means that depending on your taste, the fat content and calories could be more than what is shown in the chart. Figure 1 – Starbucks Nutritional Facts (Beverages) (http://www.starbucks.com/retail/nutrition_info.asp) Figure 1.2 – Starbucks Nutritional Facts (Food Items) (http://www.starbucks.com/retail/nutrition_freshfood_detail.asp) Figure 2 – McDonalds Nutritional Facts (http://app.mcdonalds.com/bagamcmeal) What is Starbucks planning to do to lower fat and calories in their products? Starbucks is offering non-fat milk and soy to help trim down the fat and calories. The alternative ingredients do alter the flavor a bit, so it may not be the choice of most customers. b.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Advertise to public about fat content of their products It seems like Starbucks doesn’t want the general public to really know how bad the nutritional facts are right up front in their stores. If you walk into a Starbucks store you see mostly pictures of some of their least nutritional coffee beverages because they look the most appetizing. I think if more people knew how bad Starbucks products were they would see a significant reduction in revenue. This would be especially true with today’s low carb, low fat health trends. Starbucks does however provide a nice nutritional facts chart on their website, but who is looking at the website while ordering anyway? So as far as I can tell Starbucks plans on feeding America’s sweet tooth and will continue to fatten them up.

Monday, November 11, 2019

Slavery In the North and South

Contrary to what many people in this country believe, slavery took place in the North and the South. In fact, Massachusetts was the first colony to legalize slavery. By the year 1700, Rhode Island had surpassed Massachusetts as the chief importer of slaves in the north. Major slave ports included Boston, Salem, Providence, and New London. The tariffs that were enforced upon slave imports were used to pay for community projects, such as repairs to roads and bridges. At the beginning of importing and exporting Africans, slavery disguised itself as indentured servitude.But the reality was that indentured servants, of African origin, were often turned into slaves against their will and against the contract they had signed to enter to the New World. Indentured servitude became outdated and old-fashioned due to the fact that the general society was uncomfortable with allowing former servants to purchase land after their contract expired. Another reason for this is due the fact that servant s were much more expensive to replace than slaves. Lastly, making black slaves gave an easily identified mark— one skin color determined who the horse was and who the king was.Slavery existed in New York, Philadelphia, New Jersey, Massachusetts and the other Northern states. Famous Northerners, such as John Hancock, Benjamin Franklin, and William Henry Steward (the 24th secretary of state, in President Lincoln’s cabinet) were slave-owners. Although slaver was abolished in New England by 1804 slavery continued in the northern colonies for another 80 years. Northerners profited from slavery in many ways. New England’s manufacturing empire was based on shipping and their shipping money was acquired through the trading of slaves.Without a workforce as large as the slavery had offered, the towns, cities and companies would have taken sustainably longer to develop and prosper in the way that they did. The poor, landless white indentured servant was a problem for the c olonial establishment elevating them above the African slave solved two problems: African slaves were more abundant and easy to come by, and the landless hapless white servant now had a reason to feel superior. The white indentured servant could vent their hostility at the Africans and thus provided the upper class with a buffer.This led to an eventual phasing-out of indentured servitude, and the rise in slavery. An example of how fearful the colonial establishment was of the rising dissatisfaction that the landless felt was the Bacon Rebellion of 1676. Here slaves and Indentured servants got together and tried to overtake the planters of Virginia. The reason why slavery was abolished in the North had more to do with the expense associated with keeping slaves and with the need for the economy to have workers who could fuel the needs of the industrial revolution.The north did not have a large-scale agrarian society so slavery did not come to be relied upon the same way it was relied upon in the south; Slavery also lost its hold in the North because of the Revolutionary War with Britain. As Britain moved throughout the newly created United States of America, it freed the slaves, using them to help Britain wage its war against the new founded country. The puritan influence was also a factor in the freeing of slaves. The idea that freedom should be accessible to all came into conflict with the concept of slavery.However, it is also clear that the Puritan ethic led Northerners to erase their hand in the slave trade. Ultimately, this ability to forget their part in the slave trade led the Northern colonies to believe that the southern slave system was alien and set apart from their own lifestyle. The north was less conducive to farming. However, for the most part, this was the mainstay of families in the northern colonies. Towns were built around these farms and these towns produced areas for other industry.The church, the general store, and the entertainment indust ries of bars and hotel services all grew up alongside the farming community. Because the northern colonies were along the coastline, many industries were built up around living life near the water. To earn a living, people engaged aquatic activities in fishing, whaling, and shipbuilding. Because the land was so unsuitable for large scale farming, the northern colonies developed different than their warm, southern counterparts. Fur trading and timber were large enterprises in the Northern colonies.The harsh conditions also made it necessary that every member of the family be a part of the family’s survival. Children were not educated formally unless they were from the upper class of society. However, every white person was expected to know and be able to read the Bible. Religion was an important center of community life. The church established both secular and religious law, and enforced both. It is no surprise that higher education started in the North, with Harvard opening i n 1636. The northern states were made of people from England and the Netherlands.As a  result, the architecture, clothing, types of food enjoyed, and social activities differed from their southern counterparts. In New England for instance, stones were used to build cellars so that one could have frost free winter storage. The layout of the home was to maximize warmth from the fireplace and slope of the roof was made to compensate and distribute the weight of heavy snowfall. The northern treatment of slaves was also influenced by the British and Dutch cultures, often seemingly less harsh in their treatment of servants and slaves than their French and Spanish competitors in the south.Family life was also culturally influenced with men hunting, fishing, and tanning animal hides to make clothing. Women and children worked inside the home making textiles and preparing food. In the south, everyone had to be on hand to plant and harvest crops and thus the division of labor seemed much di fferent than in the South. The conditions under which the northern and southern colonies developed were vastly different from one another. Culture, geographic location, religious, and philosophical differences produced two distinct economic and social systems.However, it is very clear that slavery was the constant thread through which businesses flourished and many colonists got rich. The slave trade continues to be a shameful mark upon all the achievements that occurred in the Colonial Americas and in the United States. Slavery’s abolishment came as a result of economic necessity rather than moral indignation and any attempt to forget this devalues the horrors that slavery inflicted on the African people who came to the New world.

Saturday, November 9, 2019

Media Violence Outline Essay

I. Introduction A. Thesis Statement You are what you watch. Easy to say, and not too difficult to imagine either. A little over a decade ago, two boys who later became household names in America, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold walked into Columbine High School in Colorado and went on a mass murdering spree where they killed 12 students, 1 teacher and injured 23 others before shooting themselves (Anderson & Dill, 2008). While their motives behind doing so cannot be ascertained, one possible contributing element which did surface was the influence of violent video games. At the risk of oversimplifying what is possibly a complex psychological minefield, Harris and Klebold did enjoy playing a game called Doom, which is licensed by the American military for the purpose of training soldiers to kill effectively. Harris had customized his own version of this game and put it up on his website, which was later tracked by The Simon Wisenthal Center (Anderson & Dill, 2008). This version of the game had two shooters with an unlimited supply of weapons and ammunition, and their targets lacked the ability to retaliate. A class project required them to make a video of themselves similar to the game, and in it, they dressed in trench coats, armed with weapons, and conduct the massacre of school athletes. Less than one year had gone by when Harris and Klebold played their videotape out, in real life, and became the protagonists of the deadliest high school shooting in U.S. history (Anderson & Dill, 2008). II. Body paragraph #1 There is nothing new about the presence of violence in our tools of entertainment. Whether they were ancient Greek dramas, theatre in the Elizabethan era or the modern electronic dramas of today, a healthy dose of violence was never missing. In Macbeth for instance, Shakespeare showed Macbeth’s head being brought on stage at the end of the play (Bushman & Anderson, 2001). The Great Train Robbery, an 11-minute film directed by Edwin S. Porter was the first firm considered to tell a story in a systematic manner. In one scene, he shows an intense scene where a cowboy fires a pistol directly at the camera, which when first showed to audiences, had them running out of the theaters in disarray and fear (Bushman & Anderson, 2001). A. Since the advent of media itself, there have been countless studies on the connection between depiction of violence in media and its occurrence in real life. B. Discussions, debates, conclusions and grey areas have all been further examined and while television is the most prominent target of accusations, comic books, jazz, rock and roll music and video games have not escaped blame either. C. Research on this topic started as early as the 1960s when television was a recent entrant in the media fray and a causal connection has been derived between media violence and aggressive behavior. III. Body paragraph #2 Opponents fuss over the definition and measurement of media violence, does actual physical bodily harm constitute violence or can a threatening statement also be deemed so? Then, does media violence cause aggression, or are the two simply associated? Consistency of the relationship also causes doubts over agreed upon data when the example of Japan is quoted, where violent media is extremely common, yet crime rates are significantly low  (Anderson & Dill, 2008). Then is media solely to blame for violence in society? Doesn’t that take the blame away from a lot of other contributing factors in society itself and make the argument generally unrealistic? A. All these issues and thorny areas can be settled by the simple logic of the social learning theory which proposes that when people see that a certain behavior causes positive or desired results, there is a high probability of them imitating and enacting that behavior (in this case, violent) themselves (Anderson & Dill, 2008). B. So while the strength of the relationship and the presence of other factors and the measurement of violence itself can be debated till the end of time, the fact remains, when children view aggressive behavior and violence in cartoons, video games, movies, as well as on the internet, it encourages similar tendencies in them and these children are more likely to be aggressive as children and later as adults. C. Research started as early as 1956 when researchers analyzed and compared the behavior of 24 children, half of whom had watched an episode of the cartoon Woody Woodpecker with distinct depictions of aggressive behavior, while the other half were exposed to the cartoon The Little Red Hen which did not depict any violence at all (Huesmann. 2003). IV. Body paragraph #3 Studies have also shown that the kind of violence which affects their psyche and causes them to model their behavior as depicted in media is when they can associate real life with the situation depicted, because they can identify with the character responsible for the violence and observe him/her/it getting rewarded for the violence. A. Research conducted by Boyatzis, Matillo and Nesbit (Gunter & McAleer, 1997) proved earlier theories about media violence getting encoded in the cognitive map of viewers and subsequently instigating violent thoughts and acts upon repeated viewings. B. The popular children’s series Mighty Morphin Power Rangers was used to prove that after watching a single episode from this show, children incorporated more aggression into their play with other children. C. Results showed that children who had seen the episode became significantly more aggressive at play the following day as compared to the children from the control group: V. Body paragraph #4 TV is not the sole culprit in this regard. Other mediums and tools of entertainment have an equal role to play. In â€Å"Effects of Video Games on Aggressive Thoughts and Behaviors During Development†, Koojimans (2004) explains the General Aggression Model – the name coined for the phenomenon which explains how video games and their depictions of violence influence people and make them more susceptible of indulging in violent behavior themselves. This model elaborates on how various situational and personological factors combine to influence a person’s internal state which includes his thoughts, feelings and physical arousals (Koojimans, 2004). A. Research conducted on video games by Nicoll and Kieffer, presented to the American Psychological Association as â€Å"Violence in Video Games: A Review of the Empirical Research† found that youth upon playing a violent video game, if only for a short while, displayed more aggressive behavior than before (Nicoll & Kieffer, 2005). B. Another study was conducted with more than 600 students of 8th and 9th grade as participants and showed that children who played more video games also had more of a tendency to get involved in arguments with their seniors and other teachers, and they would also be more likely to get into physical rows with their peers (Nicoll & Kieffer, 2005). C. Not only that but it was also found that children who spent more time watching video games imitate the characters they acted out in the video game and their moves while playing with their friends. VI. Conclusion The plethora of research knowledge available about the effects of violence in the media definitely supports initial concerns about media violence as well as the efforts to control its harmful effects. While causality can be debated till time eternal, what can’t be denied and what should absolutely not be brushed under the carpet for any longer is that a steady diet of violence does in fact instigate violent tendencies in viewers, be it through violent television programs, movies, cartoons, video games or any other forms of entertainment which incorporate violence in various forms. Media today plays a key role in nourishing children’s minds, and for the larger case of public health and societal betterment, we need to ensure that we provide more nourishing fare for our children and youth. Reducing their exposure to violent media is definitely the first step in the right direction, with the potential to yield positive benefits. An intervention is needed before we start reaping the seeds of aggression and rebellion that have been planted in young minds owing to careless media policies. References Anderson, Craig and Karen Dill. â€Å"Video Games and Aggressive Thoughts, Feelings, and Behavior in the Laboratory and in Life.† Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 78 (2008): 772-790. Bushman, Brad and Craig Anderson. â€Å"Media Violence and the American Public: Scientific Fact Versus Media Misinformation† American Psychologist 56 (2001): 477-489. Gunter, Barry and Jill McAleer. Children and Television (second edition), Routledge: London, 1997. Huesmann, L. Rowell, Jessica Moise-Titus, Cheryll-Lynn Podolski, and Leonard Eron. â€Å"Longitudinal Relations between Children’s Exposure to TV Violence and their Aggressive and Violent Behavior in Young Adulthood: 1977-1992.† Developmental Psychology 39 (2003): 201-221. Kooijmans, Thomas. â€Å"Effects of Video Games on Aggressive Thoughts and Behaviors During Development†. Rochester Institute of Technology. 2004 Nicoll, Jessica and Kevin M. Kieffer. â€Å"Violence in Video Games: A Review of the Empirical Research.† Presentation to the American Psychological Association, August 2005.

Thursday, November 7, 2019

Up to 75 Percent of US Youth Ineligible for Military

Up to 75 Percent of US Youth Ineligible for Military About 75 percent of Americas 17- to 24-year-olds were ineligible for military service due to lack of education, obesity, and other physical problems, or criminal history in 2009, according to a report issued by the Mission: Readiness group. Since Congress ended the military draft in 1973, the U.S. armed services depend on a constant flow of new volunteers every year.  While that figure has since dropped to 71 percent, the problems with military recruiting remain the same. Military Eligibility Key Takeaways At least 71 percent of Americans between 17 and 24 are now ineligible to serve in the military- some 24 million of the 34 million people in that age range. The strength of the U.S. military depends on a constant flow of qualified volunteers.National security is directly compromised by manpower shortages in the armed forces. Just Not Smart Enough In its report, Ready, Willing and Unable to Serve, Mission: Readiness - a group of retired military and civilian military leaders - found that one in four young people between 17 and 24 does not have a high school diploma. About 30 percent of those who do, states the report, still fail the Armed Forces Qualification Test, the entrance test required to join the US military. Another one in ten young people cannot serve because of past convictions for felonies or serious misdemeanors, states the report. Obesity and Other Health Problems Wash Many Out A full 27 percent of young Americans are simply too overweight to join the military, says Mission: Readiness. Many are turned away by recruiters and others never try to join. Of those who attempt to join, however, roughly 15,000 young potential recruits fail their entrance physicals every year because they are too heavy. Nearly 32 percent have other disqualifying health problems, including asthma, eyesight or hearing problems, mental health issues, or recent treatment for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Due to all of the above and other assorted problems, only about two out of 10 American young people are fully eligible to join the military without special waivers, according to the report.Imagine ten young people walking into a recruiters office and seven of them getting turned away, said former Under Secretary of the Army Joe Reeder in a press release. We cannot allow todays dropout crisis to become a national security crisis. Post-Recession Military Recruiting Goals in Jeopardy Clearly, what worries the members of Mission: Readiness - and the Pentagon - is that faced with this ever-shrinking pool of qualified young people, the US military branches will no longer be able to meet their recruiting goals once the economy recovers and non-military jobs return.Once the economy begins to grow again, the challenge of finding enough high-quality recruits will return, states the report. Unless we help more young people get on the right track today, our future military readiness will be put at risk. The armed services are meeting recruitment targets in 2009, but those of us who have served in command roles are worried about the trends we see, said Rear Admiral James Barnett (USN, Ret.), in a press release. Our national security in the year 2030 is absolutely dependent on whats going on in pre-kindergarten today. We urge Congress to take action on this issue this year. Making Them Smarter, Better, Sooner The action Rear Admiral Barnett wants Congress to take is to pass the Early Learning Challenge Fund Act (H.R. 3221), which would pump over $10 billion into the slate of early education reforms proposed by the Obama administration in July of 2009. Reacting to the report, then Sec. of Education Arne Duncan said the support of the Mission: Readiness group demonstrates how important early childhood development is for the country.I am proud to be joining these senior retired admirals and generals who have served our nation with courage and distinction, Sec. Duncan said. We know that investing in high-quality early learning programs helps more young children enter school with the skills they need to be successful. That is why this administration has proposed a new investment in early childhood development through the Early Learning Challenge Fund. In its report, the retired admirals and generals of Mission: Readiness cite research studies showing that children who benefit from early childhood education are significantly more likely to graduate from high school and avoid crime as adults. Commanders in the field have to trust that our soldiers will respect authority, work within the rules and know the difference between right and wrong, said Major General James A. Kelley (USA, Ret.). Early learning opportunities help instill the qualities that make better citizens, better workers and better candidates for uniformed service. Stressing that early education is about more than learning to read and count, the report states, Young children also need to learn to share, wait their turn, follow directions, and build relationships. This is when children begin to develop a conscience differentiating right from wrong and when they start learning to stick with a task until it is completed. Some Improvement by 2017 In 2017, the Pentagon reported that 71 percent of young Americans between 17 and 24 are ineligible to serve in the United States military. While an improvement since 2009, this still means that over 24 million of the 34 million people of the eligible age group cannot serve in the armed forces. The Pentagon continues to stress the situation’s alarming threat to national security. As former commander of the Marine Corps Recruiting Command, Major General Mark Brilakis stated, â€Å"There are 30 some million 17- to 24 year-olds out there, but by the time you get all the way down to those that are qualified, you’re down to less than a million young Americans.†

Tuesday, November 5, 2019

Dont call me a cougar

Don't call me a cougar Although the term cougar has become synonymous with older women who date younger men, its predatory image is neither accurate nor acceptable in the opinion of many women tagged with the label. Since theres no similar word to describe an older man who dates younger women, many feel its far from complimentary. In fact, they say it is ageist, sexist, and certainly not empowering to women. Celebrities from Demi Moore (whose husband Ashton Kutcher is 16 years her junior) to Kim Cattrall have emphatically stated, Dont call me a cougar! Cattrall in particular rejects the the idea that Samantha, the iconic character she played for six seasons on Sex and the City, is a cougar, saying that some who are uncomfortable with strong women use the term to label women. As Cattrall told the celebrity news show Extra, I dont see anything negative about Samantha and her sexuality, sensuality and choice. Long before Moore or Cattrall took a public anti-cougar stand, UK artist and entrepreneur Julia Macmillan defied the label by making the domain name dontcallmeacougar.com her own. There, she started a blog supportive of women in relationships with younger men because, as she sees it, it should be as normal for a woman to date a younger man as it always has been for a man to date or marry a younger women. Like many attractive and intelligent women who look younger than their years, Macmillan typically dated younger men not because she sought them out but because they had approached her and were more compatible than men her age. When she tried online dating in 2006, she found she wasnt connecting with the same type of men she had met in person; and those that were contacting her didnt suit her at all. Thinking that there had to be a better way, in 2007 she founded a UK dating website with a deliberately sassy, tongue-in-cheek name ToyboyWarehouse.com where members abide by one simple rule: that women date men at least a year younger, and men date women at least a year older. Nowhere on the website is the word cougar ever used. As Macmillan says, Its not empowering to women. She seems to have hit a nerve. Three years later, the site is so successful shes planning to launch a US version of ToyboyWarehouse in late 2010 in the New York City area. I spoke with Julia Macmillan about the cougar stereotype, the reasons why it persists even as women reject the term in growing numbers, and whether theres greater cultural acceptance in the UK or the US toward older female/younger male relationships. You avoid the term cougar and have said, In my view there should be no label. After all, there isnt one for a man who dates a younger woman. What is that stereotype that people have regarding cougars thats offensive to you? Its a stereotype of a woman whos looking for younger men for casual sex which is how the term started originally. I think theres so much more to it than that. The attraction is an enormous part a relationship but sometimes two people can be attracted to each other because they have so much in common. Cougar is too oversexualized and too predatory an image to apply to a broad section of women. Its just one particular type of woman, not all the types of women that necessarily date younger men. Quite a lot of women find it offensive because theyre not the predators. In fact, I know on our site its the young men who are chasing the women. These women are just fabulous. Theyre independent, attractive, but theyre not pouncing on young men. So I think its inaccurate and limiting. Women who routinely date younger men have told me its not as if either side is asking about their partners age. In fact, they say that age doesnt come up in the discussion. The men take the women at face value. Do you find this to be true? That is so true that comment is so spot on. Age doesnt really come up in the conversation. Women are looking fantastic; theyre looking better than before and taking care of their bodies. Its not like 10-15 years ago when a woman over 45 found herself abandoned by a husband who had left her for some young secretary. Today women have the same choices as men. I think cougar is a bit demeaning. Many women say it doesnt apply to them at all. They wouldnt want to be called a cougar and never refer to themselves as cougars. When you look at all the dating sites with cougar in the title there are pictures of attractive middle-aged women in a state of undress. Theres something slightly tacky about that. Theres a lot of really classy women out there who wouldnt want that label attached to them. When an older man dates a younger woman, nobody blinks. Yet not too long ago, if a woman dated a man just 3-5 years younger than herself, she faced disgust and outrage. Back then, shed have been called a cradle robber. Why does this double standard exist? Why is there such animosity towards women? I really think it has to do with whos losing ground in this whole thing. When you look at news articles in the online media referring to some new celebrity whos going out with a younger man, you get a lot of really unpleasant aggressive comments from men because theyre the ones who are going to be left out. Theyve had it their own way for so long; theyve always been able to play the field with women their own age or younger. For women, its been very restricting and socially unacceptable until fairly recently although I do think its been going on longer in a more secretive way for women to date younger men. And I dont mean to be racist about this, but it tends to be older white men that are upset. More and more women are acknowledging their sexuality which before they had to keep in a closed closet. And older white men dont like the kind of freedom that women have been gaining because they dont have so much power anymore. Unfortunately theyre the ones who tend to run the whole establishment and their views have been the predominant views. Women are becoming more powerful in more and more areas, including business and in their choice of partners. Men are going to have to accept the fact that theyre going to lose ground but that its going to be better for all of us in the end. What do you think younger men appreciate about older women? Older women, younger women thats all relative too. Ive got younger women signing up on ToyboyWarehouse who are 30 years old. Its the type of women they are. Theyre independent; theyve got great jobs; they arent looking for a man as a meal ticket because they can take care of themselves. Instead, theyre looking for a man to have a connection with. It could be a purely physical connection; it could be a mental and physical connection (which is obviously the best); but theyre not looking to be dependent on a man. I think that is what the men absolutely love. Older women tend not to have the ticking clock young women have who are looking for husband material. Older women tend to take the relationship as it comes and see how it develops. Most cougar dating websites treat women as if were simply sexual toys; they dont take the whole woman into account. Thats not the case with your website. What did you want to create in ToyboyWarehouse that you had not found on other existing sites? Ive had feedback from other women that confirmed my own bad experiences with online dating. I was 46 when tried it for the first time in the summer of 2006. On the mainstream sites I found that a woman over 40 would tend to get messages from rather boring older men. Id always dated younger men and I just wasnt interested in the type of men I was meeting. Although Id never done anything in the dating industry, I thought, well it cant be too difficult to create the kind of site that I would actually like to be on. The very name ToyboyWarehouse is humorous and witty, and thats an essential part of attraction. The idea was to be fun and playful its from a womans point of view. It evokes the image of a woman going around with a shopping cart and saying, That one looks nice on the shelf. Ill have that one. When the site went live in 2007 there was literally nothing out there for women in their late 30s or older who wanted something a little more exciting than a pipe-and-slippers man whose highlight of the week was probably watching his car in his drive. That was what was missing for me. Do you see any cultural differences in the way older woman/younger man relationships are perceived in the UK vs. the US? It seems that in the UK these women are seen as cheeky and playful, whereas in the US were much more judgmental and make moral assumptions about women who date younger men. I think there are two slightly different issues here. Theres the issue of the actual word cougar. My feeling is that its more acceptable in the US than the UK. We did a survey to see what women thought of the word whether theyd like to be labeled as that. And 95% said, No, it doesnt apply to us. We dont like that word. Possibly in the UK its more acceptable that a older woman should go out with a younger man. Every time a film star or pop star dates a younger man it puts the idea out there. In the US some might see the word cougar as positive because its a beautiful animal; they like the idea of it and they dont see it as a stereotyped label whereas in the UK we fight labels more and its not a badge of honor to be called a cougar its seen as really derogatory. Were going through a transition period. In the next generation it will be as normal for a woman to date a younger man as it always has been the other way around. Were fighting for equality in how were being referred to as well as acceptance that a women can express her own sexuality. Women are so critical of themselves when theyre younger. But as we get older, particularly once were into our 40s and 50s, we tend to become free of those former constraints. Wed like to see that freedom reflected in the partner were with. Yet it seems that at the same time women become more free and liberated within themselves, men seem to shut down. Youve absolutely hit the nail on the head. Young men dont close down but older men do. Ive heard from women who say that if they go out with a man their age, generally hes been through a marriage and hes got a lot of baggage and the kids and the awful ex-wife that he goes on about. Its not much fun for a woman to deal with all of that. Younger men dont tend to have that. Theyre much freer to appreciate a woman. We get a lot of divorcees on the site that have just come out of a 15-year marriage. Maybe their husband hasnt paid them much attention and they havent had sex for years and their self-esteem is at rock bottom; they think theyre not attractive. But then they get adoring emails from young men who say, Youre so beautiful, and suddenly they realize how attractive they really are. Its the most enormous ego boost. They begin dressing up again and then relationships start and suddenly its a whole new world for them. Your website understands what a woman past a certain age wants, and you emphasize intelligence, elegance, and wit. How is it that you get this when so many mainstream sites completely miss this? I think its because Im one of the very few site owners thats a woman. Most sites are run by corporations with all-male boards. There are only a couple of sites that I know of that are founded by women, and women know what other women want. All the marketing I do tends to be social media marketing aimed at women because weve never had problems getting men. There are three times as many men on the site as women. The more you move towards classy, intelligent, elegant, the more women will come. The more you move towards its just about sex the more you cut out a whole swath of women who wouldnt join that kind of site. You can be sexy and intelligent thats going to come through in a site but you cant just push it as a sex site, because that will put a lot of women off. Ive tried to make sure that ToyboyWarehouse is responsive to our UK members. Ive been good at listening to what they ask for. Id like to hear what women want in the US version of ToyboyWarehouse. The tagline in the States will be Where smart meets sexy and I think that encapsulates what its really all about.

Saturday, November 2, 2019

Development of Railways and it's impact on the society Essay

Development of Railways and it's impact on the society - Essay Example 1). This paper studies the factors causing the growth of railways in Europe and its impact on the society. The birth of railways happened in the year 1767 when the iron rails were laid for the first time ever at Coalbrookdale. The early railways were used in the French Wars that were carried out between 1790s and 1800s. At Pen-y-Darren, in the year 1804, the Trevithick’s Wylam locomotive was used which was one of the first forms of railway. Four years later at Euston, the Trevithick’s Catch-me-who-can was used. The Blenkinsops rack locomotive and the Hedleys Puffing Billy were introduced successively in the years 1812 and 1813 respectively. The Stephenson’s Blocher was used in 1815. Stephenson created the Stockton to Darlington railway line that was 27 miles of 4 8Â ½" track in the length was opened in the year 1825 (historyhome.co.uk, 2011). The first passengers were carried by the Locomotion 1. Joseph Hall in 1825 developed the Cort’s puddling process as well as the rolling process. Coke was replaced by coal with the hot blast method proposed by Neilson in 1828. The 30 miles long railway line leading from Manchester to Liverpool was commenced in the year 1830. In 1833, a railway line for the transportation of coal was started from Liecester to Swanington. Daniel Gooch engineered the project of the London – Bristol line construction. The Isambard Kingdom Brunel undertook this project in 1835. This marked the beginning of the Great Western Railway that was completely flat over a length of 85 miles. The London - Bath – Briston railway line and the Birmingham to London railway line were started in 1838. Till the year 1838, the total length of railway lines that had been made was 500 miles. In just a matter of ten years till 1848 the growth of the railway became so rampant that the total length of railway lines increased from 500 miles to 5000 miles.  "The