Ring-Tailed Lemur free essay sample

Lemurs are found exclusively on the small island of Madagascar, which is located on the coast of Africa, and some of the small neighboring islands. Due to this geographic isolation, Madagascar is the home to numerous amazing animals that are not found anywhere else on Earth. It has been said that lemurs might just have floated there eons ago on â€Å"rafts† of vegetation and simply evolved in isolation over countless centuries. If I were an animal, I would have to say that I would be a lemur. One of the two main reasons is because that lemurs are, naturally, a rare, and therefore endangered, species; thus making them truly one-of-a-kind. As my classmate and close friend, Lauren, told me, â€Å"[A lemur is] a rare animal and one-of-a-kind, like you. † The ring-tailed lemur was, quite obviously, named for the fact that its’ tail has black and gray rings on it. â€Å"Their ringed tails represent your layers of personalities,† Lauren added when she was explaining exactly why I would be a ring-tailed lemur if I were an animal. We will write a custom essay sample on Ring-Tailed Lemur or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page As Lauren had said, the lemurs’ ringed-tails represent my many-layered personality. At school I am typically quiet, shy, and respectful. At home I am typically loud and talkative, yet extremely secretive. Around my friends I am talkative, kind, honest, but still secretive. Around little children and the elderly I am more open, compassionate, respectful, yet still slightly reserved. If I were an animal, I would have to say that I would be a lemur, and more specifically, a ring-tailed lemur.

Free Essays on Lack of Attention and Affection

Many children in the United States have the same problem as Jimmy. Parents always working late, never have enough money, always on edge. The parents in America are so stressed out by the time they get home from their job, they are yelling and screaming, or too tired to even notice the children. Parents are so worried about their daily duties they forget to ask the simple questions. For example, how was your day today? Or, what did you learn today? In my opinion these are some of the most valuable factors in a kids life. Just giving a child that couple minutes, it really shows you care. Morally you should be there for your child at all times never putting anything first. These are some of the complaints I have received from a child in my office. His name is Jimmy. Jimmy has been sent to the office many times and hasn’t learned yet. Today he is in my office with more than just a problem in school. Jimmy is suffering from lack of attention and lack of affection. Me as the guidanc e counselor can only help to a certain extent. The issues that are in my hands will be handled. Regarding actions away from school I can’t control them first hand, but I can try to influence his choices. First I would like to help him out by letting him know that he is not alone, and that I am on his side. I am not against him in any since. I feel Jimmy is just lacking a little attention and needs some help to keep his spare time occupied. I want to first see where Jimmy is coming from what is the situation at home. I want to ask him what his family life is like and hear first hand from him what life is like for him. After getting to know Jimmy I have found that his family life is rough and too much for one child to handle. He is at home juggling his mother’s emotions, taking care of younger siblings, and trying to fit in at school. This is all too much for him to handle and he has never been set a moral example of how to cope with all of his emotions. The o... Free Essays on Lack of Attention and Affection Free Essays on Lack of Attention and Affection Many children in the United States have the same problem as Jimmy. Parents always working late, never have enough money, always on edge. The parents in America are so stressed out by the time they get home from their job, they are yelling and screaming, or too tired to even notice the children. Parents are so worried about their daily duties they forget to ask the simple questions. For example, how was your day today? Or, what did you learn today? In my opinion these are some of the most valuable factors in a kids life. Just giving a child that couple minutes, it really shows you care. Morally you should be there for your child at all times never putting anything first. These are some of the complaints I have received from a child in my office. His name is Jimmy. Jimmy has been sent to the office many times and hasn’t learned yet. Today he is in my office with more than just a problem in school. Jimmy is suffering from lack of attention and lack of affection. Me as the guidanc e counselor can only help to a certain extent. The issues that are in my hands will be handled. Regarding actions away from school I can’t control them first hand, but I can try to influence his choices. First I would like to help him out by letting him know that he is not alone, and that I am on his side. I am not against him in any since. I feel Jimmy is just lacking a little attention and needs some help to keep his spare time occupied. I want to first see where Jimmy is coming from what is the situation at home. I want to ask him what his family life is like and hear first hand from him what life is like for him. After getting to know Jimmy I have found that his family life is rough and too much for one child to handle. He is at home juggling his mother’s emotions, taking care of younger siblings, and trying to fit in at school. This is all too much for him to handle and he has never been set a moral example of how to cope with all of his emotions. The o...

Integration of Peace and Conflict studies to Human Rights study Essay

Integration of Peace and Conflict studies to Human Rights study - Essay Example However, of all the political systems, it is widely argued that democracy is best suited to ensure both peace and the fulfillment of human rights. The question is now posed: do we need democracy to ensure human rights and peace? This paper shall outline the relationship between peace, human rights and democracy. It shall explain the contradictions which are detailed above, and critically evaluate the perceived weakness of democracy. Peace, human rights and democracy are often in close relations with each other (Frowein, 2006). The tenets of democracy are very much based on the peaceful relations of the people. An analysis by Savir, (2008, p. 202) sets forth that peace is a prerequisite to democracy. When people are beset by conflicts, they also have little initiative in engaging in participatory democracy. However, in times of peace, â€Å"societies are receptive to regional and international relationships that allow pluralist ideas to penetrate† (Savir, 2008, p. 202). Furthermore, when the borders of nations are open, open economies also ensue – and later they create cooperation, tolerance and peace among nations. When peaceful relations are installed in any society, more political improvements and economic reforms can be implemented (Savir, 2008, p. 202). Peace is not dependent on the establishment of a democratic form of government. The elements of democracy which include the participation of the grassroots citizens as well as the local government units are important elements which are essential in order to ensure a peaceful nation – even if that nation is not necessarily a democratic one (Savir, 2008, p. 202). A peace which is built on the grassroots level can be easily implemented and nurtured by the people because it comes from their initiative. â€Å"This citizen’s peace will encourage the support and the participation of the people, leading to the democratization of peace and

IDENTITY paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

IDENTITY paper - Essay Example The word agency in this context refers that 'agency is directly tied to social structures' in so far as they interact and produce society together. Obviously, Agents have complete knowledge of their society and this mutual information that therein produces structures. The everyday ordinary life of an agent leads is simply a part of reproduction in society. The important thing is here that Levine theory primary refers "Ontologiclal" security in the trust. In contrast, Agency, apart from reproduction of society can also lead to the transformation of society. According to Levine a good way to explain this concept is "reflexive monitoring of actions". Reflexive monitoring looks at the skill to look at actions to estimate their effectiveness in achieving their aims. However, if agents can replicate structure through action, they can also transform it. However, according to Levine "in terms of identity formation and maintenance, two key issues pertain to (a) the relevance of the concepts of structure and agency for understanding identity, and (b) the extent to which identity is conceptualized as having an "inner" versus "outer" origin. The first issue involves assumptions regarding individual causality, or personal responsibility; the sociological equivalent of which lies in the notions of reflexivity and agency. It is quite true that this issue has long been ignored in sociology, but as noted, the issue is currently being discussed by late modernists in terms of the structure-agency debate (i.e., how much individuals exercise control independent of social structure versus how much social structure determines individual behavior". (Levine, 2002, pg, 54+) Structural Influence on Identity (A) Gender Base Structural Influence on Identity The benefits of receiving ample parental support and, conversely, the costs of receiving poor parental support during childhood may be the most powerful within "same-sex parent-child dyads". The important point is to note here is that the daughter-mother relationship is central in most women's lives. Certianly, this relationship between mother and daughter is a key influence in the identity formation and the long-term psychosocial adjustment of daughter. Similarly, the son-father relationship has significant influence on the development psychosocial, morality, behaviour and so on. Furthermore, the relationship between father and son influences everything in a man's life, in what he sees himself and in what way he sees all other people. Thus, the amount of support a child receives within this same-sex dyad would be a important determinant of psychosocial and moral values development an individual's life course. "When taken together, this review suggests that although receiving early parental support may be an important predictor of mental and physical health outcomes in later life, the impact of early parental support can be fully appreciated only by identifying the social structural factors that are most closely associated with receiving poor support in early life and understanding how associations between levels of support received during childhood. However, moral and behavior status vary according to following factors. 1. Does the amount of early parental support reported vary by gender of the parent, gender of the child, or racial or socioeconomic status 2. Is the moral of women and men differentially

Nutraceuticals International Essay Example for Free

Nutraceuticals International Essay 1. â€Å"Beetroot juice ‘can beat blood pressure’. † Nutraceuticals International 13. 2 (Feb 2008). Summary/Critique Medications for hypertension can amount to a lot of money each year. This is the reason why many experts are trying to look at cheaper alternatives in producing medicines that could alleviate the upsurge of this dreaded disease. Cheaper medicines can come in a form of herbal remedies. In this report that appeared in a magazine Nurtaceuticals International (Feb.2008), it has been revealed that British researchers at Barts and The London School of Medicine found a new way of vitally reducing the blood pressure of hypertension patients. By taking 500ml of beetroot juice each, they might have a chance of being cured of their hypertension. The group of researchers, led by Amrita Ahluwalia and Ben Benjamin, identified that it is the â€Å"ingestion of dietary nitrate contained within beetroot juice† that does the trick. The effect can also be seen when people are eating green, leafy vegetables that ultimately results in decreased blood pressure. Because of the antioxidant vitamin content of vegetable-rich diet people can be protected against heart disease. This article is very informative because readers can learn the importance of having good diet can help everyone have a healthier life. Also, this article could encourage more experts in trying to find alternative ways of helping people with hypertension. Full Text Article: â€Å"Beetroot juice ‘can beat blood pressure’. † Nutraceuticals International 13. 2 (Feb 2008). Researchers at Barts and The London School of Medicine in the UK have discovered that drinking just 500ml of beetroot juice a day can significantly reduce blood pressure. The study, published on-line on February 5 in the American Heart Associations journal Hypertension, could have major implications for the treatment of cardiovascular disease. Lead by Amrita Ahluwalia, professor at the William Harvey Research Institute at Barts and The London School of Medicine, and Ben Benjamin, professor at Peninsula Medical School, USA, the research reveals that it is the ingestion of dietary nitrate contained within beetroot juice and similarly in green, leafy vegetables which results ultimately in decreased blood pressure. Previously, the protective effects of vegetable-rich diets had been attributed to their antioxidant vitamin content. Effective one hour post ingestion Prof Ahluwalia and her team found that, in healthy volunteers, blood pressure was reduced within just one hour of ingesting beetroot juice, with a peak drop occurring three-four hours after ingestion. Some degree of reduction continued to be observed until up to 24 hours after consumption. Researchers showed that the decrease in blood pressure was due to the chemical formation of nitrite from the dietary nitrate in the juice. The nitrate in the juice is converted in saliva by bacteria on the tongue into nitrite. This nitrite-containing saliva is swallowed and, in the acidic environment of the stomach is either converted into nitric oxide or re-enters the circulation as nitrite. The peak time of reduction in blood pressure correlated with the appearance and peak levels of nitrite in the circulation, an effect that was absent in a second group of volunteers who refrained from swallowing their saliva during, and three hours following, beetroot ingestion. More than 25% of the worlds adult population are hypertensive, and it has been estimated that this figure will increase to 29% by 2025. In addition, hypertension causes around 50% of coronary heart disease, and approximately 75% of strokes. In demonstrating that nitrate is likely to underlie the cardio-protective effect of a vegetable-rich diet, the research of Prof Ahluwalia and her colleagues highlights the potential of a natural, low cost approach for the treatment of cardiovascular disease a condition that kills over 110,000 people in England alone every year. Prof Ahluwalia concluded: our research suggests that drinking beetroot juice, or consuming other nitrate-rich vegetables, might be a simple way to maintain a healthy cardiovascular system, and might also be an additional approach that one could take in the modern day battle against rising blood pressure. 2. Zoler, Mitchel L. â€Å"Hypertension doubles female sexual dysfunction prevalence. † Family Practice News 36. 20 (Oct 15, 2006): 14. Summary Critique: We only know that hypertension affects the circulatory system of the human body. However, in this article by Mitchel Zoler (2006), it has been found that hypertensive women have double the risk of having sexual dysfunction than women with normal blood pressure. This proposition came after scientists have conducted a study of 417 women. As Dr. Michael Doumas reported in the annual meeting of the American Society of Hypertension, â€Å"women with controlled hypertension had a significantly lower prevalence of sexual dysfunction than did women whose hypertension failed to reach goal levels during treatment† (Zoler, 2006). In this particular study, all women were tasked to complete a â€Å"19-question form that has been validated as a way to evaluate sexual function†. The questions dealt with several domains of female sexual function: desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, satisfaction, and pain. The survey found out that among the women with hypertension, â€Å"42% had scores indicating sexual dysfunction†, which is far in statistically significant when compared with â€Å"19% among the normotensives†. Looking on how the researchers arrived at this conclusion can be doubtful because they merely based it on a survey, which can be a result of many other factors other than hypertension. Yet, this observation should not be taken complacently because hypertension is a common disease in the United States and its link to reproductive dysfunction in women should be established so that doctors will know how to alleviate the worsening problem of hypertension. Full Text Article: Zoler, Mitchel L. â€Å"Hypertension doubles female sexual dysfunction prevalence. † Family Practice News 36. 20 (Oct 15, 2006): 14. NEW YORK Women with hypertension were twice as likely to have sexual dysfunction as normotensive women were, in a study of 417 women. The results also showed that women with controlled hypertension had a significantly lower prevalence of sexual dysfunction than did women whose hypertension failed to reach goal levels during treatment, Dr. Michael Doumas reported at the annual meeting of the American Society of Hypertension. But a third finding was that women who were treated with antihypertensive drugs had a higher prevalence of sexual dysfunction than did untreated women. Dr.Doumas speculated that this was caused by the effects of certain antihypertensive drugs, such as diuretics and [beta]-blockers. Treatment with other drug types, the angiotensin-receptor blockers and angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, appeared to reduce sexual dysfunction, he said. We need to treat hypertension because of its effect on adverse cardiac outcomes. But there is a hint that we can lower blood pressure with some drugs and also have good effects on female sexual function, said Dr. Doumas, a physician in the department of internal medicine at the Hospital of Alexandroupolis in Athens. The study enrolled 216 women with hypertension and 201 normotensive women. Their average age overall was about 48, and all were sexually active. The women completed a 19-question form that has been validated as a way to evaluate sexual function. The questions dealt with several domains of female sexual function: desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, satisfaction, and pain. Among the women with hypertension, 42% had scores indicating sexual dysfunction, compared with 19% among the normotensives, which was a statistically significant difference. The prevalence of sexual dysfunction increased significantly with the duration of hypertension. Among women who had been hypertensive for fewer than 3 years, 16% had a score indicating sexual dysfunction; the rate rose to 33% among women with hypertension for 3-6 years and 79% among women with hypertension for more than 6 years. Age also showed a significant interaction with prevalence. Among women aged 31-40 years, the prevalence of dysfunction was 21%; the rate rose to 38% among women aged 41-50 and to 57% among women who were older than 50 years. The prevalence of sexual dysfunction was 48% among women treated for hypertension, compared with 33% among the untreated hypertensives, a significant difference. The average age was 48 years in both groups. But the prevalence was lower still among the hypertensive women who had their pressure controlled by treatment. With control defined as a pressure of less than 140/90 mm Hg, the prevalence of sexual dysfunction in women with controlled hypertension was 27%, significantly less than the 51% of women with uncontrolled hypertension who had dysfunction. Its not yet known how antihypertensive drugs exert differing effects on sexual function. In general, drugs that cause vasodilation appear to improve sexual dysfunction, Dr. Doumas said. 3. â€Å"Liver linked to deadly disease. † USA Today (Magazine) 135. 2737 (Oct 2006): 10. The liver is important in the human body because it produces many enzymes that aid the digestion of our food intake. This is why it can be alarming to have liver disorders because it can affect our system from metabolizing food. For example, in the United States, many people consume an excessive amount of protein. The metabolism of excess protein, especially animal protein, can put a strain on the liver and kidneys in fats include dairy products, vegetable oils, and red meat. In this report from USA Today, it was found that liver disorders may trigger a deadly type of hypertension. As a physician from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center named Dan Rockey informed, this type of hypertension is called portal hypertension that â€Å"affects the blood flow into the portal vein, which feeds blood to the liver†. This report is alarming because the short-term mortality rate of having â€Å"portal hypertension is about 30%† (USA Today, October 2006). Dan Rockey and his colleagues are undergoing research to open new grounds for this disease and to find â€Å"possible clinical approaches†. Portal hypertension can trigger bleeding and development of fluid found in the abdomen. It is important to take more research on this type of hypertension because it can possibly become an epidemic if it is not treated. Also, we can take steps in taking care of our liver by reducing alcohol intake and eating healthy food. Full Text Article: Liver linked to deadly disease. USA Today (Magazine) 135. 2737 (Oct 2006): 10. Mechanisms causing a potentially deadly type of hypertension that result from liver damage have been identified by Don Rockey, a physician at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas. Portal hypertension affects the blood flow into the portal vein, which feeds blood to the liver. Rockey identified the cellular activity that results in portal hypertension. He and his colleagues then took the research a step further, showing that, if the process can be interrupted, the hypertension subsides. Portal hypertension is a deadly disease that complicates many forms of chronic liver injury, he explains. When this occurs, in its most severe form, the prognosis definitely becomes guarded, often leading to the need for a liver transplant. The short-term mortality for patients with portal hypertension is about 30%. The latest research opens new ground and has implications for possible clinical approaches. The end result of portal hypertension is bleeding and development of ascites [fluid in the abdomen]; so, if you could treat it early, you could prevent bleeding or the formation of ascites, Rockey observes. Portal hypertension is similar to the widely known essential hypertensionwhich impairs blood flow to the heart systemsexcept it affects blood flow to the liver-related systems. The liver is an essential organ that washes the bodys blood of wastes and poisons. Cirrhosis of the liver occurs when the cells are damaged. Scarring often results, reducing blood flow and raising pressure on veins. The high pressure can cause veins to burst, resulting in internal bleeding and, potentially, death. Previous studies have shown that, at the cellular level, portal hypertension results from reduced production of needed nitric oxide, which regulates expansion of the blood vessels. Rockeys research identifies how the nitric oxide production breaks down due to the effects of the protein GRK2. The protein attaches to another protein called AKT, interrupting the creation of nitric oxide. 4. Zoler, Mitchel L. â€Å"Hypertension diagnosis often missed in children. † Family Practice News 35. 11 (June 1, 2005): 15. We might not know it but children can develop hypertension too. Since the late 1980s, the rate of pre-hypertension and hypertension among U. S. children and teenagers has continued to increase. However, according to Zoler (June 1, 2005), experts miss 85% of these cases. In this article, Dr. Charlene K. Mitchell informed that â€Å"the problem with diagnosing hypertension in kids is that there are too many threshold pressures for most physicians to keep straight†. The guidelines for diagnosing children with the condition are different than those for adults. The point at which children are considered to have hypertension is determined by age, gender, weight and height, and young patients usually are not diagnosed until they have higher-than-normal readings for at least three visits. American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines require that blood pressure be taken at every doctors visit, but some physicians do not then calculate whether it is too high, especially if the child is healthy otherwise. This is why Dr. Mitchell suggested the researchers should be â€Å"aggressive† in finding a solution not to miss the diagnosis of hypertension in children. The impact of missing the diagnosis of hypertension in kids can be tremendous because it is a â€Å"killer† disease. Doctors missing to identify it could not suggest medications and this can be life-threatening for the children. More serious research should be conducted to identify what method is appropriate in determining the occurrence of hypertension in children. Full Text Article: Zoler, Mitchel L. Hypertension diagnosis often missed in children. Family Practice News 35. 11 (June 1, 2005): 15. New Orleans A diagnosis of hypertension was missed in 85% of children with high blood pressure in a study of 287 youngsters who were examined at two university-based, pediatric clinics. The problem with diagnosing hypertension in kids is that there are too many threshold pressures for most physicians to keep straight, Charlene K. Mitchell, M. D. , said at the annual meeting of the Southern Society for Pediatric Research. Because the threshold for diagnosing hypertension varies by age, height, and gender, there are a total of 420 different diastolic and systolic pressures that determine whether a particular child has high blood pressure, said Dr. Mitchell, a pediatrician and internist at the University of Louisville (Ky. ). The total is 420 because there are 15 different age-specific threshold pressures for children aged 3-17 years, 7 different height-specific threshold pressures between the 5th and 95th height percentiles, different thresholds for girls and boys, and different thresholds for diastolic and systolic pressure. The threshold criteria for borderline hypertension would add another 120 pressure thresholds for diagnosing hypertension. The numbers are chopped up too much. Its far too complex for easy management, Dr. Mitchell said. If physicians must always look on a table every time they check a blood pressure, well continue to see underdiagnosis. Her solution to the number surfeit is to cluster several ages with a single diagnostic pressure threshold. However, eventually she would like to have study results establish pressure thresholds for diagnosing hypertension that are empirically derived, rather than based on statistics. If the diagnostic criteria are simplified, physicians will be much more likely to identify hypertension in children much more often, Dr. Mitchell said. We need to be much more aggressive about recognizing hypertension in children than we are now, she added. Her study was designed to assess physician accuracy at identifying hypertension in children aged 3-17 years being seen for routine, well-child visits from July 31 to Aug. 15, 2003. Of the 287 children examined, 90 (31%) had hypertension by current standards, and 35 (12%) had borderline hypertension. But only 15% of those with hypertension were diagnosed by their examining physicians. The results also showed that physicians were more likely to diagnose hypertension in children with a higher body mass index (BMI). The children who were correctly diagnosed as hypertensive were, on average, in the 92nd percentile for BMI. Those who had unrecognized blood pressure elevations were, on average, in the 76th percentile for BMI. 5. Bradbury, Jane. â€Å"The chicken and egg in hypertension†, The Lancet 349. 9059 (April 19, 1997), p. 1151. It is important to know where essential hypertension will trigger from because it can aid doctors to foresee the development of this dreaded disease. To wit, there is an ongoing debate of whether essential hypertension occurs when there is a perceived micro vascular abnormality or is when doctors see higher levels of blood pressure. In this article, UK clinicians found that males â€Å"with a familial predisposition to high blood pressure, a reduced number of capillaries and impaired microvascular dilatation precede hypertension†. In the research conducted by Professor David Webb and his team from the University of Edinburgh, they utilized the â€Å"four-corners epidemiological model† in predicting the triggering point of hypertension. Their study in 1977 determined the measure of blood pressure from 1809 married couples. In 1985, 864 of the 16–24 year-old children that came from the previous couples â€Å"had their blood pressure measured† too. Then, the researchers classified â€Å"four groups of offspring† by â€Å"combinations of personal (high or low) and parental (high or low) blood pressure†. Through these extensive studies, they determined that â€Å"microvessel characteristics which might be responsible for increased vascular resistance in essential hypertension†. Mostly, it is the males â€Å"with high blood pressure whose parents also had high blood pressure had significantly impaired dermal vasodilatation compared with the other three groups†. Also, they researchers observed they had â€Å"significantly fewer capillaries in the finger during venous occlusion†. This article can be helpful in the research of determining hypertension before it develops into a full-blown disease. Full Text Article: Bradbury, Jane. â€Å"The chicken and egg in hypertension†, The Lancet 349. 9059 (April 19, 1997), 1151. What comes first in essential hypertension-microvascular abnormalities or a rise in blood pressure? UK clinicians report this week that in men with a familial predisposition to high blood pressure, a reduced number of capillaries and impaired microvascular dilatation precede hypertension. Prof David Webb (University of Edinburgh, UK) and his team used the â€Å"four-corners† epidemiological model to unravel cause and effect in hypertension. In 1977, blood pressure was measured in 1809 married couples. 864 16–24 year-old offspring from 603 of the families had their blood pressure measured in 1985. Four groups of offspring were defined by combinations of personal (high or low) and parental (high or low) blood pressure. Microvessel characteristics which might be responsible for increased vascular resistance in essential hypertension were measured in 1993–95 for 105 men drawn from the four populations (J Clin Invest 1997; 99: 1873–79). Men with high blood pressure whose parents also had high blood pressure had significantly impaired dermal vasodilatation compared with the other three groups. They also had significantly fewer capillaries in the finger during venous occlusion. Factors which are associated with high blood pressure in offspring whose parent had high blood pressure are more likely to be causal than those that are associated with high blood pressure in the offspring irrespective of parental blood pressure, write the authors. The results suggest that defective angiogenesis may be an etiological component of hypertension, either environmental or genetic, and are consistent with the higher incidence of adult hypertension in people with a low birth weight. These findings, says Webb, should focus attention on the importance of early life factors in the programming of hypertension. 6. McCarron, David A. â€Å"Diet and high blood pressure the paradigm shift. † Science 281. 5379 (August 14, 1998): 933-934. Doctors and nutritionists always exhort people to make a change to healthier diets because it can aid all of us in preventing deleterious diseases. According to McCarron (Aug. 14, 1998), â€Å"humans are nearly unique in their natural propensity to develop elevated arterial pressure, a fact attributed to both genetic and environmental factors†. Many experts point an accusing finger on salt being the one that can contribute to the occurrence of hypertension. However, McCarron (Aug. 14, 1998) revealed that the â€Å"importance of salt in the pathogenesis of hypertension† is still being debated and â€Å"remains undetermined†. Experts began to accuse the extreme use of salt as the one that causes hypertension â€Å"when early studies indicated that salt intake increased blood pressure†. However, McCarron (Aug. 14, 1998) indicated that â€Å"many of these studies have since been discounted for design and methodologic flaws. But even where the methodology is sound, sodium intake cannot be linked to hypertension or higher population-wide blood pressure†. In more conclusive studies, there existed a â€Å"compelling evidence that adequate intake of minerals, rather than restriction of sodium, should be the focus of dietary recommendations for the general population†. This article is enlightening due to the fact that it debunks the myth of salt being the primary cause of developing hypertension. The author suggests that we should limit our mineral intake and not just salt alone, in order to live a healthy lifestyle. We should not manipulate our diet to our own detriment, but we should shift it to become health-conscious because we are already armed with the knowledge of what’s good for us. Full Text Article: McCarron, David A. Diet and high blood pressure the paradigm shift. Science 281. n5379 (August 14, 1998): 933(2). Hypertensiona serious health problem for industrialized societiescontributes significantly to the risk of coronary heart disease, congestive heart failure, stroke, and kidney failure. Among vertebrates, humans are nearly unique in their natural propensity to develop elevated arterial pressure, a fact attributed to both genetic and environmental factors. Only certain highly inbred strains of rodents and genetically engineered animals also spontaneously exhibit hypertension. Public policy has generally recommended that blood pressure can best be controlled by restriction of sodium chloride intake and with medication (1). Recent research has, however, emphasized the powerful role of total diet in the etiology and treatment of hypertension, suggesting that the focus of current public policy regarding nutrition and blood pressure is too narrow. Limitation of sodium chloride in food has historically been the dietary mantra of those who set nutritional policy for hypertension. Nevertheless, the importance of salt in the pathogenesis of hypertension has long been debated (2-4) and remains undetermined (5). The intense focus on sodium began when early studies indicated that salt intake increased blood pressure. These studies, many conducted decades ago, included epidemiologic surveys in primitive societies, clinical trials in patients with kidney disease, and animal investigations in which sodium intake levels cannot be realistically extrapolated to humans (6). Many of these studies have since been discounted for design and methodologic flaws. But even where the methodology is sound, sodium intake cannot be linked to hypertension or higher population-wide blood pressure (7). Two recent meta-analyses of randomized controlled trialsone examining the effects of sodium restriction (8) and the other of calcium supplementation on arterial pressure (9)provide compelling evidence that adequate intake of minerals, rather than restriction of sodium, should be the focus of dietary recommendations for the general population. Assessing 56 trials of sodium restriction, Midgley et al. (8) concluded that individuals with normal blood pressure gained nothing from limiting sodium intake and that only older ([is greater than] 45 years) hypertensive people might benefit, a conclusion recently confirmed by other investigators (5). Midgley et al. also reported that the magnitudes of the blood pressure reductions were not consistently related to the amount of sodium intake, indicating that confounding factors were contributing to the changes in blood pressure. Indeed, in a meta-analysis of calcium supplementation trials, Bucher et al. (9) identified a small but consistent drop in blood pressure when normotensive and hypertensive persons consumed more calcium. They speculated that baseline calcium intake or increased biological need for minerals might be responsible for the blood pressure variability not otherwise accounted for in their analysis. These two reports presaged the outcomes of two large clinical trials from the NIH, published in 1997 (10, 11). The Trials of Hypertension Prevention (TOHP) II is the largest and longest study ever executed to test whether sodium restriction lowers arterial pressure and prevents the emergence of new hypertension cases (I0). No benefit was detected for the primary endpoint diastolic blood pressure. Systolic blood pressure decreased minimally (0. 7 mmHg), almost precisely the value that the Midgley (8) analysis projected. Furthermore, the TOHP II data demonstrated a dissociation between the extent of sodium restriction and the observed blood pressure reduction. The second large-scale study was the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine (11). As would be predicted by Bucher et al. (9) in their meta-analysis of calcium studies, in persons whose intake of dairy products (and therefore calcium and other minerals) was well below currently recommended levels, blood pressure decreased significantly when the recommended amounts were included in their diets. In the DASH diet that was rich in dairy products, fruits, and vegetables and lower in fat (with sodium held constant), blood pressure decreased 5 to 6 mmHg in subjects with normal blood pressure; in those with mild hypertension, this blood pressure reduction was doubled, to 11 to 12 mmHg. Reductions of this magnitude have been observed previously only with antihypertensive medications. A second DASH diet, which included increased amounts of fruits and vegetables but did not include dairy products, produced more modest but still significant systolic blood pressure reductions, easily surpassing those observed with sodium restriction in TOHP II. DASH confirmed the meta-analyses as well as earlier indications from observational studies that dietary factors other than sodium markedly affected blood pressure (3, 12). For example, one of the earlier studies (12) identified inadequate calcium intake from dairy products as the dietary pattern most prevalent in individuals with untreated hypertension. Another study (3), in which nutrient intake was assessed from the first National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES I), confirmed this dietary pattern in hypertensive individuals and identified the relative absence of fruits and vegetables in the American diet as the second best predictor of elevated blood pressure. These studies suggested that where intake of other critical nutrients is adequate, sodium intake at levels typically consumed in most societies might actually be associated with lower blood pressure. They also concluded that the absence of specific nutrients (calcium, potassium, and magnesium), resulting from low consumption of dairy products, fruits, and vegetables, is associated with hypertension in Americans (3, 12). The TOHP II study adds to the substantial body of literature that challenges the public health emphasis on sodium restriction as the primary nutritional means of improving blood pressure. The issue is further complicated by concerns raised in several recent reports (5, 13, 14) that the long-term effect of sodium restriction on cardiovascular morbidity and mortality may be the opposite of what has always been assumed. The DASH study provides a clear rationale for focusing our public health strategy on adequate intake of low-fat dairy products and fruits and vegetables. The consistency of the accumulated data is evident when the blood pressure changes seen with the DASH diet (11) are superimposed on the blood pressure profile of Americans as a function of calcium intake from (3) (see the figure). According to these data (3, 11), if the intakes of calcium and other nutrients obtained through low-fat dairy products, fruits, and vegetables were increased to the amounts readily achieved in the DASH study, the percentage of Americans with moderately severe hypertension (160/100 to 179/109 mmHg) would be decreased by nearly half, from approximately 9% to 5%. For the millions more with borderline elevations, the benefits are likely to be at least as great. Whether hypertension is genetic or environmental in origin, control of dietary mineral intake has a place in its management and prevention. As a society, we will not achieve the dramatic reversal in hypertensive heart disease that DASH and other studies clearly show is possible until we direct our efforts to the nutritional factors and dietary patterns that are actually relevant to this condition. In addition, diets low in fat but high in calcium, fruits, and vegetables are not prevalent in the subgroups of society at greatest risk for hypertensive cardiac diseasethe elderly and African Americans. An added plus: A diet low in fat but high in calcium, fruits, and vegetables is also consistent with reduction of two other major public health problems, osteoporosis and cancer (15, 16). The emphasis on sodium as the single dietary culprit is counterproductive to our significantly reducing cardiovascular risk for most of us (5) and diverts attention from the issues we need to address (17). Food products such as snacks and soft drinks added to our diets in recent years have supplanted nutrient-rich foods such as fruits, vegetables, and milk. This shift in dietary patterns, and simultaneous suboptimal nutrient intake, is also far more likely to contribute to the prevalence of hypertension than salt, which has always been a component of the human diet. Humans may be unique in our propensity to develop hypertension simply because we are the only species with the capacity to manipulate our diets to our own detriment. References (1.) The Sixth Report of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure, Arch. Intern. Med. 157, 2413 (1997). (2. ) G. Kolata, Science 216, 38 (1982). (3. ) D. A. McCarron, C. D. Morris, H. J. Henry, J. L. Stanton, ibid. 224, 139Z (1984). (4. ) J. D. Swales, Br. Med. J. 297, 307 (1988). (5. ) N. A. Graudal, A. M. Gallee, P. Gaffed, JAMA 279, 1383 (1998). (6. ) M. Muntzel and T. Drueke, Am. J. Hypertens. 5, 1S (1992). (7. ) Intersalt Cooperative Research Group, Br. Med. J. 297, 319 (1988). (8. ) J. P. Midgley, A. G. Matthew, C. I. T. Greenwood, A. G. Logan, JAMA 275, 1590 (1996). (9. ) H. C. Bucher et al. , ibid. , p. 1016. (10. ) Trials of Hypertension Prevention Collaborative Research Group, Arch. Intern. Med. 157, 657 (1997). (11. ) L. J. Appel et al. , N. Engl. J. Med. 336, 1117 (1997). (12. ) D. A. McCarron, C. Morris, C. Cole, Science 217, 267 (198Z). (13. ) M. H. Alderman, S. Madhavan, H. Cohen, J. E. Seatey, J. H. Laragh, Hypertension 25, 1144 (1995). (14. ) H. H. Alderman, H. Cohen, S. Madhavan, Lancet 351, 781 (1998).

Philosophy of Mind, Body and Soul

Philosophy of Mind, Body and Soul Soul, mind and body are three important and core subjects under study when discussing the philosophy of human beings. The understanding of the relationship between soul and body has always been a source of concern among philosophers. The existence of soul and justifying mind as a separate entity from brain is never completely understood. The relationship of mind with the body i.e. how the mind controls the body and how changes in the body affect the mind is always been a main issue in studying philosophy of mind. Mind philosophy is a complex subject. Some of the functions of the mind work independently from body. But others do work in collaboration with the body. Philosophers have accomplished variety of studies to understand the actual role and existence of mind that includes if mind is a physical or non-physical matter, if its the part of the body or the soul? And other issues like that. Dualism gives a good explanation of all these problems. Though there are objections to it. But it does address all issues of independent working of mind and body. Human nature is in turn a complex subject and it is difficult to grasp full knowledge of philosophical explanations of human beings Descartes used to believe that mind interacts with the brain. Though he used to consider mind as spiritual and immaterial and brain as spatial. This paper discusses why human nature and human being have problematic philosophical explanations and how mind-body relationship makes it complex and difficult to understand. The philosophy of mind gives a contemporary view of the entity mind or soul. The contemporary views do accept soul as an independent existent. The main concern of the contemporary approach is also to understand the relationship between the physical working of brain and states of mind. My theoretical outlook for the problem stated would be dualism. According to which mind is a non-physical entity and it can exist separately from the body. In this essay firstly I will explain the phenomenal features of human experience which differentiate them with other living things. The power of intelligence and consciousness produces such features. Then in the light of theories and philosophies presented by renowned philosophers such as Aristotle and Descartes, I will analyze these phenomenal features in the context of soul-body relationship. After this, a brief explanation of the concept of dualism will be presented which will serve as a theoretical outlook for this paper in discussion ahead. With the help of dualism I will explain these features. Then, there will be a brief explanation of a major objection to the concept of dualism and that is how mind and body communicate with each other? I will try to justify my response over this objection in the next part. Then I will conclude the paper having all important points. There are some features of human beings which differentiate them from other living things. With the thinking power, use of intelligence and intellect and consciousness has give human beings the power to rule the world. These phenomenal features are the most important characteristics of human mind. Its charismatic that how human mind is capable of producing all these emotions with exceptional brilliance. I will explain some of these phenomenal features. Reason is one of the phenomenal features of human being through which. With the help of this a person can draw results from the given data or observations and can make hypothesis and assumptions. Moreover, one can support its argument through reasoning. Reflection is a process depending upon thinking; augmenting and analyzing one own self. Its more of spiritual phenomena where one examines ones own conduct, feelings and actions. Emotion means the mood, feel, temperament, attitude, state of mind and heart over certain action or happening. It mostly is a part of ones personality. Motivation is a very important part of emotion. Abstraction (as discussed in the course) is a thought process which includes ideas on a general level. More general and common features or details are put together and specific details and features are left out. It involves a process of classification. Faith is one of the very strong phenomenal feature of human being. It requires a process of events and mental activity and thought process to finally able to develop faith over a certain phenomena or understanding. Socrates believed in transcendentalism and he believed that each human being is like a spark of the over soul. He also thinks that soul will be separated by the body just in case of death and it is kind of a form. Faith was the head start of the discussion of our course. Understanding and wondering which reasons and miracles had made us believe in God? The example of two places which had a bridge in between them is great in emphasizing faith. A person will cross even an unbalanced bridge if he has faith in his constructor, but he will never cross the bridge if its perfectly fine and has no belied a faith in its constructor. So we see that courage is the outcome of faith. And faith is achieved by different reasons. In fact every human being has his own reasons for faith. Th e idea of Skinner on PFHE is hopeless; it is not deliberately true that we do everything by aiming at some benefit. Its not verified in every case. We see that naturalism has been derived from metaphysical realism. Moral valuation is a study of approach, direction and way in which or through which human beings believe and develop some kind of values or beliefs. Human beings does compare things and make a choice, this behavior is valuation. The techniques to inquire investigate and acquire new aspects, information and knowledge by gathering observations, collecting evidences, making hypothesis and then proving certain hypothesis is called scientific inquiry. The emotion, urge of human being to explore, investigate, inquire and learn more about a certain thing is called curiosity. Its the driving force of advancement in science and technology. Many philosophers explained unique features of human beings through different concepts and tried to develop a connection between these features and working of the body. Aquinas used the natural theology; I still recall the long debate on natural and revealed theology. But I think Aquinas was true to some extent on proving the existence of God by the means of the natural processes and nature itself. The First Mover theory can be taken into account too. While if we see St. Thomas we will come to know that being a Christian he declined Aristotle points of views. He thought that God is actually a cause for all the natural things that had happened. Aristotle gave the philosophy of Hylomorphism, according to which soul is something which makes a body alive. Soul is a set of properties; a form.such as glass is the form of water in it. According to Aristotle soul is related to body as a form of matter. So whatever phenomenal features of human being are that are the characteristic of body because soul is the part of the body which is accomplishing all these phenomenal features. Aristotle explained the unity of soul and body, both needs each other to work. Descartes gave the philosophy of dualism, according to which mind is a separate existence from brain and is a non-physical entity. All these phenomenal features are part of mind. He was first to identify mind with consciousness, awareness and intelligence. According to him brain is a material substance which is a part of body but mind exists separately from the body. The mind according to Descartes was a non-material entity. And he considered body as an extended and non-thinking thing. He argued that mind can exist apart from its extended body. And therefore mind is not a part of the body, its a different substance. Because the essence of mind is in the power of thinking. the actual idea behind his philosophy is that mind and body can interact. He argued that only humans have minds. Animals do not have minds. They lack the feature of self-consciousness. Living things can have three grades of sensation: physical, conscious, self-conscious. According to Descartes animals and human have only first sensation in common and that is physical. For example if an animal has felt a sensation e.g., the only possible reactions would be physical like dancing, screaming etc. But they will not consciously feel anything because they lack understanding of mind. Jean- Paul Sartre presented the philosophy of Existentialism. According to this philosophy an individual is responsible for its existence and for the standard/quality of life he is living. Sartre did justice with his opinion about the individuality of human beings. Sartres example of animal and plant was the most amazing of all. He distinguishes animals and plants from human beings by saying them unconscious and more mechanically operated things. It supports the phenomena of Atheism. This philosophy justifies that human being is responsible for its own actions despite of the obstacles in life. Now, I will explain the phenomenal features of human beings in the light of dualism. Dualism is an approach which basic idea resides upon the fact that mind is a non-physical matter i.e. it is not a part of the brain. It is non-physical. Many philosophers worked on dualism but a more famous version of dualism was given by Rene Descartes who maintained that mind is a non-physical thing. According to this mind is not a part of brain. According to Descartes mind is a thinking thing. We can take the example of container to elaborate it. Consider human being as a container which has body and brain in it along with a SEPARATE non-physical mind. Mind thinks, hopes, believes and have the consciousness and intelligence to deal with situations. Moreover Descartes argued that mind is a separate non-physical entity which can exist without the body. Phenomenal features of human beings can be well explained through Dualism. All the phenomenal features explained above are states of mind which are attributes of a non-physical matter. A physical matter cannot think, reason, and argue. These feelings of curiosity, believes, enquiring, emotion and reflection are the products of mind. Mind is the force which pushes the body to work to learn more about a certain thing. For example a person read something, it always has some effects on his/her mind. Mind will ponder about that subject and ideas are built through it, which as a result produces curiosity to learn more. And scientific inquiry takes place to reach to a certain solution. And the mind develops values and believes on the basis of the observations and results around it. And all these features of human being which are related to awareness, consciousness and intelligence are the products of mind. Mind is the one producing and operating them. If dualism is not true then mind is only the physical brain. Then in this situation we cannot think of a material substance to possess the qualities of consciousness which is the central ingredient for possessing phenomenal features. We cannot then expect features like consciousness, emotions, curiosity, sensations, desires, beliefs etc. So there has to be something which is responsible for these behaviors, and that is mind which is not material and which is a non-physical substance. Interactionism is a view of dualists, which can explain well these phenomenal features which occur as an interaction of mind and body. Thomas is said to be the symbolic founder of interactionism. Thomas thought that people were not exclusively controlled by the socialism and social pressures. Mental states always have this link with physical states. When we see something, we use our eyes and eyes send message to mind which invokes some kind of emotion, action or feeling. If a person has got an injury, he will feel pain and he will cry for help. And if somebody hears him, he will experience an emotion to reach for help. So the process continues with the series of interactions. And we can see the example of a sailor and a ship. The sailor can feel the bruise he has on his hands but he cant actually feel the pain when the ship is damaged or broken. There is also some objection for this school of philosophy. One of the major objections is casual interaction. A major objection to this view is that how mind interacts with the body i.e. how physical states interact or send a message to mental states and vice versa. If mind is a non-physical matter then how it is interacting with a physical matter. There is no explanation to this. When a person is injured, how the message is transferred toward mind which as a results cause the state of pain. When mind is not a part of body then how this communication is working? Obviously, we assume there will be a series of events which will finally let this pain feeling happen. There will be nerves playing around sending the message finally to the brain. But then how brain (a physical matter) will send or transfer this message to mind (a non-physical matter). That is a very big question mark? Descartes himself did not have a proper answer to this problem. His meditations which we have elaborately studied in this course have revealed to us many of his point of views. He says that we can doubt all the things and he considers mind as indivisible and body as divisible. He was of the view that this interaction of soul and body or mind and body is through PINEAL GLAND, which is a gland in human brain. He says how the idea of a ruling absolute power exists in our minds? Thus he says that we distinctly perceive. All he was trying to do was to prove the immortality of the soul. He maintained that casual interaction is taking place through pineal gland. But this is not a very good explanation. Again the problem is same, how a non-material mind is interacting with pineal gland (which obviously is a physical matter). Some of Descartes students, ef Arnold Geulincx adopted a different frame of mind for this problem. And I find that solution very satisfactory. According to Arnold that a ll these mind-body interactions are a result of direct intervention of God. So, when God wants, these interactions happen otherwise not. These interactions are not because of a certain mechanism or through some medium; they happen and occur when there is Gods will. Only God knows how it works, he is responsible for this stimulation. Human body and human nature is a very complex subject. The human nature cannot be understood easily. There are phenomenal features of human beings which differs them from other living things and those phenomenal features have convinced us that there is something non-physical in human body which is responsible for these phenomenal features. Dualism answers some of such questions and consider mind a non-physical entity responsible for such features and it is a separate entity from brain. But a major objection to dualism is that how mind interacts with the body? What is the medium of communication between a physical and non-physical matter? And a satisfactory answer would be that God is above all. The interaction between mind and body is dependent on God. And may be only he knows and he is responsible for such bizarre communication.

February Action †creative writing Essay

So, after my great holidays, back to reality. In this case, it meant moving flats. I moved out of my friends’ flat and in with two Mexican siblings, girl (spoilt acting student) and boy (pain in the ass lawyer student). (The statements in this part are highly influenced by later experiences with the two people, I got along with them and their family fine. ) And when I moved I found the flat under water. So the first thing I did was spend hours soaking towels. Apart from that the two were always nice to me, the guy was almost never there and the girl went home on weekends, so I had the place to myself a lot, which was great. The flat was on the ground floor, so despite great sunny weather outside, I lived in freezing conditions. But it was well-located for work and social life. My room consisted of a bed and a built in cupboard (already provided) and a very useful box (which I found on the street and stayed with me until I moved out). I started working too†¦ giving English classes in the Bank of Mexico, some 20 hours a week, all 1-1 classes with mostly enjoyable students. As I had already found a football team, it meant I had found friends who took me out, to the cinema and every sunday the PUMAS (one of the local teams) game was a must. I was introduced to the stadium, the anthem (!!!! ) and the during match entertainment (beer and crisps) and the after match entertainment (more beer, discussion of game, and strange activities like having electric shocks outside of the stadium). Although not completely my description of a great time, it was good fun nevertheless. I otherwise spent quite lazy weekends, enjoying the company of my friend Itziar and playing football. At the end of February, the football girls had a huge party, which was great great fun, a lovely, welcoming group of girls who know how to party. There I became better friends with a lot of them, which was very nice. The party was full of good food, dancing, dancing and dancing and when it ended, we decided to go to a friends’ house to continue the party, but we all ended up falling asleep there. So some good weekend action. I was invited by the family of my flatmates to Cuernavaca, which is the getaway for inhabitants of the big City. (btw, if New York City is the Big Apple, Mexico City must be something like the Big Papaya) I went out on the Saturday morning by bus and then spent quite a relaxed time in the house, which is quite a bit outside of the city center. We had a lovely meal and then they took me into the city center, where they, interestingly enough, put me on the tourist bus and I went around on that. Pity really, because the main square had some really interesting and fun dancing and singing going on, surrounded by people selling handcrafts and other oddities. So the bus ride was quite amusing, lots of historically interesting information that I forget while the guide is finishing the sentence. Cuernavaca is a nice city and the bus also took us on a walk through some park/ravine, which was also umm†¦ nice. Then in the evening I met the family to have supper at a very good Italian restaurant before we headed back to their house, where I fell right to sleep (tired from the party, obviously). Sunday just meant a long sleep, another nice meal and then the return journey back to the city. So I got a look at what Cuernavaca was like, which was enjoyable. Next time, I’ll just go by myself to see more of the place instead of seeing it wizzing by from the Touribus.

Reflections on Libertarianism

Libertarianism As a Christina view, in the beginning of the time, â€Å"For in Him all things were created: things in Heaven and on Earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through Him and for Him† (Colossians 1: 16). Human beings were created by God with one purpose to worship to Him. God knew that the first man and woman were going to fall down in the enemy temptation. That is why He created every single thing perfectly. However, we study the history through the Bible or other kind of books.We will see that few people fallowed that commitment and other people did things that are not pleasing to Him. God hoped to receive worship from them, but it was not like that. God is a gentleman, He never is going to force us to do things that we do not want to do. He gave us freedom or freewill to do whatever we want to and chooses between the good or evil. Every single human’s act will have its reward. As the Scriptures says that there are two ways, a big one and small one. In the big way, many people go in that direction because is easier; however, it drives to the perdition.The small way is the opposite form (Mathew 7: 13-14). The human’s stages start born, growing, reproducing, and dying. While, the people still alive, â€Å"Each mind is a world† (Kay, 1998, p. 163). We do different things from others and we do not care what others think about us because we have libertarianism. What is libertarianism? â€Å"It is a particular account of the metaphysics of human choice† (Stewart, Blocker & Petrik, 2012, p. 154). The libertarianism is also used in philosophy and it can refer to the freedom, liberty, right, and freewill.They are fundamental goods that governments should be extremely slow to restrict them. Long time ago, there were many slaves did not count with those goods, they knew to work for someone. We can imagine that it was hard to live in that time, now we se e different when someone left from the jail and the person is free. He stills happy and he does not want to come back again. As human beings have the knowledge to understand which things are bad and good. Libertarianism has pro and con or for and against.For example, I go to buy a used video game to Game Stop, I am going to buy it because I want it or like it, and I do not care other people think about me. In this example there are both. The pro could be that it is cheaper than the new one, but the con may be does not work well. â€Å"‘I have the right to do anything,’ you say—but not everything is beneficial. ‘I have the right to do anything’—but not everything is constructive† (Corinthians 10: 23). Libertarianism is based on the principles of Self-Ownership. It means that I have to live my own life and let others live their lives. Self-Ownership is to deny, this is to imply that another person has a higher claim on your life than you do† (Norquist, 2005). No, other person or group of people, own your life nor do you own the lives of others. For example a person exist in times and it is manifest as; past (product of your life and liberty), present (freedom or rights) and future (life). If we lose the life, then we lose our future. However, if we lose the freedom, then we lose the present or if we lose the product of our life, then we lose the past that includes our knowledge. The product if our life and our liberty is our property.Property is the fruit of our labor and the product of the time, talents, and energy. As a human being, property is part of us; it is our nature, which we turn to valuable use. At times, some people use force or fraud to take form other without voluntary consent. Examples of them are: if someone takes the life of other is murder, about liberty is slavery and property is theft. We have the right to protect our own lives, liberty and property from the forceful aggression of others. A lso, we can ask for help to others to defend us (parents) because they never want bad thing for their children.Nevertheless, we have to be sure that we are not initiating to force against the life, liberty, and property of others. We have the right to seek for a leader for ourselves to drive us, but we do not have rights to impose rulers onto others. Since we our own life, we are responsible for our lives. We do not ret our lives from other humans who demand obedience. We studied in the beginning the God created us and just to Him we should show up obedience and worship to Him; however we do not do it. We are living in the grace time that is why God does not destroy us yet. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ† (John 1: 17). Nor are we slaves form others who demand our sacrifice. In our lives, we choose our own goals based on our own vales, those values can go downs and ups; however we will reach one of the goal. Success and failure bo th are necessary incentives to learn and to grow. Our actions on behalf of others or their actions behalf of us, it is virtuous only when it is derived firm voluntary, mutual and consent. For virtue just can exist only where there is free choice.It is not only the most practical and humanitarian foundation for human action, it is also the most ethical. The problems in the world that arise from initiation of force by government have a solution. The solution is for the people of the Earth to stop asking government officials and initiate force on their behalf. Evil does not arise only form evil people, but also from good people who tolerant the initiation of forces as means to their own ends. In this manner, good people have empowered evil people through the history. Achieving a free society requires courage to think, to talk and to act. I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do† (Romans 7: 15). References (1998). King James Bible. (KJ V ed. , Vol. Deuteronomy). Nashville, TN: Cornerstone Bible Publishers. Kay B. Warren (1998). Indigenous movements and their critics. United Kingdom: Princeton University Press, 41 Street Princeton, New Jersey 08540. 163. Norquist, G. (2005). Ownership Can Be Revolutionary. American Enterprise,  16(2), 50. Stewart, D. , Blocker, G. H. , & Petrik, J. (2012). Fundamentals of philosophy. (8th ed. ed. ). New York: Pearson.

Georg Simmel Domination and Freedom Essay Example

Georg Simmel Domination and Freedom Essay Example Georg Simmel Domination and Freedom Paper Georg Simmel Domination and Freedom Paper Georg Simmel, in his work â€Å"Domination and Freedom†, identifies domination as a form of interaction. He claims that both the superordinate and the subordinate parties interact intentionally. By this assumption, he concludes that domination never totally kills freedom unless there is a case of physical force executed on subjugated party. The aim of this work is to demonstrate that Simmel’s argument advocating that mentioned interaction is mutually determined is fallacious. Simmel definitely misses a point while constructing his ideas on the nature of domination: the subordinate does not essentially interact intentionally. According to Simmel, authority is established in two different ways. In first, a significant person acquires authority by his excelling decisions and merely subjective personality. Thus, superordinate enjoys being the focus of objectivity in his environment. In the other case, a super-individual power such as state blesses a person with authority. Simmel uses the term generatio aequivoca, meaning spontaneous generation, to refer to the process by which authority descends upon a person. He strongly argues that in both processes there exists a voluntary faith of subjugated party. Subordinate elements are being seen as more or less voluntary participants of a sociological event. He furthermore exemplifies his argument by situation of a speaker or a teacher. A spekaer in front of an audience or a teacher in a class enjoys only a momentary superordination. : A person in such a situation sees himself as the only decision maker. However, his actions are widely determined by the mass he claims to subordinate. Simmel quotes a German party leader to empower his argument: â€Å"I am their leader, therefore I must follow them. † Simmel admits the existence of a one-sided subordination only in a medieval theory of state in which, ruler’s authority depends on subjects’ mutual contract but not on a contract between ruler and ruled. But he argues that in contemporary theories, the contract namely ‘laws’ also binds the ruler more or less. To some extent, Simmel’s arguments seem to be really convincing. On the other hand, he, in a way, attempts to narrow down the concept of freedom. Giovanni Sartori uses the term concept stretching in order to refer to attribute a meaning to a concept that it does not have (Sartori 24). Similarly, in â€Å"Domination and Freedom†, Georg Simmel takes only a narrow account of concept of freedom. For example, his ideas about how much a ruling class should regard the opinions, delicacies and propensities of public are essential in understanding power relations. Nevertheless, he chooses to foresee how ruling class manages these affairs; making the public think, care and tend to what the ruling class itself wants without recognizing the fact. He gives the example of a teacher as a seemingly superordination. Whereas, he avoids from drawing attention to a worker’s situation, in which employee and employer have a seemingly reciprocal interaction of power; but in fact, employer abuses employee’s labor. The status-quo prevents people from understanding what real freedom is, therefore making any seemingly reciprocity pointless. In conlusion, the claim of reciprocal determinance of domination articulated by Georg Simmel fails to explain power relations. He squeezes the concept of freedom into a so called ability to effect relations between subordinate and superordinate. Despite there is no physical violence as Simmel argues, nobody can say that a consumer in 21st century, whose needs, tastes and abilities determined by the system itself, has freedom. Without understanding systematic opression that modernity exercises upon people, it seems impossible to make sense of domination and freedom.

Explicación sencilla del sistema educativo en EE.UU.

Explicacià ³n sencilla del sistema educativo en EE.UU. Para los recià ©n llegados a Estados Unidos, el sistema educativo es uno de los grandes misterios y uno de los temas que ms inquietudes plantea. Para navegarlo exitosamente es importante entender los puntos bsicos de la educacià ³n obligatoria. En este artà ­culo se resuelven dudas sobre quà © aà ±os comprende la educacià ³n obligatoria, tipos de escuelas, cules son los grados y, finalmente, temas especiales como estatus migratorio y escuelas pà ºblicas, alimentos, educacià ³n especial, etc. Aà ±os de educacià ³n obligatoria en EE.UU.: K-12 En Estados Unidos la educacià ³n es obligatoria entre los grados K-12, esto quiere decir, entre kindergarten -preescolar- al grado 12. Lo que no es tan claro es a quà © edad se debe comenzar en kindergarten y a cul finalizar los estudios obligatorios ya que cada estado establece sus propias reglas. Pero en general puede decirse que en algà ºn punto entre los 5 y los 8 aà ±os los nià ±os deben escolarizarse y deben estudiar hasta los 16 o, en algunos estados, 18-19 aà ±os. Por ejemplo, en California es obligatoria la enseà ±anza entre las edades de 6 y 18 aà ±os, pero se permite dejar de estudiar a los 16 si el estudiante se ha graduado de high school o ha obtenido el tà ­tulo equivalente que se conoce como CHSPE y, adems, tiene el permiso de sus padres. Por otro lado, en Connecticut la educacià ³n es obligatoria entre los 5 y los 18 aà ±os, permitiendo la ley multas y cargos delictivos contra los padres que no envà ­an a sus hijos a las escuelas.  ¿Dà ³nde deben escolarizarse los nià ±os? Estados Unidos brinda un amplio abanico de posibilidades para enviar a las escuelas a nià ±os, desde escuelas pà ºblicas y todas sus variedades o privadas y todas las diferentes opciones, pasando por educacià ³n en casa. Segà ºn el Centro Nacional de Estadà ­sticas para la Educacià ³n, 50.700.000 estudiantes estudian en escuelas pà ºblicas, es decir, la mayorà ­a de los pupilos en edad de estudios obligatorios. Las escuelas pà ºblicas se caracterizan por: ser gratuitas para los estudianteslos fondos provienen del gobierno federal, el estado, el condado, la municipalidad o una combinacià ³n de variosestn obligadas a admitir a los estudiantes que habitualmente residen en el distrito escolar En algunos estados se permite que los padres puedan elegir escuela. Tambià ©n es frecuente que se permitan alternativas a los padres cuando la calidad de las escuelas del lugar donde residen deja mucho que desear en cuanto a calidad, mediante el sistema que se conoce como voucher. Existen varios tipos de escuelas pà ºblicas. En primer lugar, estn las regulares. Algunas son excelentes. Adems de las regulares, estn las chapter, que son escuelas que funcionan con fondos pà ºblicos pero que son gestionadas privadamente por empresas, por cooperativas de maestros o, incluso, por padres o por comunidades. Existe una importante diferencia en calidad de la enseà ±anza entre distintas escuelas chapters, por lo que si esa es la opcià ³n de los padres es muy conveniente que investiguen antes de registrar a sus hijos. Adems, estn las escuelas pà ºblicas conocidas como magnet, que son escuelas pà ºblicas que destacan por su excelencia acadà ©mica. Se especializan en un rea acadà ©mica en particular. Las magnet se caracterizan por asegurar la diversidad à ©tnica y racial de sus estudiantes.  En esta base de datos se puede ver cules son las mejor calificadas en todo Estados Unidos, permitià ©ndose una bà ºsqueda por estados. Por otro lado, tambià ©n existen varios tipos de escuelas privadas en las que en la actualidad estudian poco menos de 6 millones de alumnos.  En este tipo de escuelas los estudiantes envà ­an una solicitud y deben esperar a ver si son admitidos. Asimismo, deben pagar por sus estudios, aunque hay casos en los que hay becas disponibles para los mejores estudiantes sin recursos econà ³micos. En Estados Unidos, donde 1 de cada 3 high schools son privadas, existen los siguientes tipos de escuelas de esta naturaleza: En primer lugar, estn las Escuelas independientes, que no pueden recibir fondos de grupos religiosos, aunque pueden tener una estrecha relacià ³n con ellos. Hay menos de 2,000 pero se encuentran dentro de esta categorà ­a las famosas  Phillips Academy  Andover, con un excelente sistema de becas para  estudiantes excelentes pero sin recursos,  y Exeter. En segundo lugar, hay escuelas parroquiales, que estn estrechamente vinculadas con una iglesia y son muy populares, conformando el mayor nà ºmero de escuelas privadas. En los Estados Unidos la mayorà ­a son catà ³licas, aunque tambià ©n las hay protestantes y judà ­as. Un aspecto a tener en cuenta es que son, en general, notablemente ms baratas que las escuelas independientes. En tercer lugar, destacar las escuelas privadas con fin de lucro, que se conocen en inglà ©s como proprietary schools.   Por à ºltimo, existe una alternativa a las escuelas pà ºblicas y a las privadas: la escolaridad en casa y es que en los Estados Unidos ms de un millà ³n y medio de estudiantes reciben la educacià ³n en sus casas, lo que se conoce como home schooling,  actuando como profesores sus padres, maestros-tutores contratados o, incluso, siguiendo cursos completos por internet. Los requerimientos en cuanto a la obligacià ³n de notificar esta opcià ³n de enseà ±anza, rendir exmenes o curriculum a seguir varà ­a enormemente entre los diferentes estados, por lo que es necesario informarse en profundidad de las reglas que rigen en el lugar de residencia habitual.    ¿Cà ³mo se dividen las escuelas por grados? Es muy comà ºn encontrar estos tipos de escuelas: En primer lugar, Primaria, conocida en inglà ©s como elementary school. Los muchachos estudian hasta los grados 5to o 6to, dependiendo de los distritos. Como regla general, hasta que tienen 11-12 aà ±os. En segundo lugar, Intermediaria, conocida en inglà ©s como middle school y tambià ©n como junior high. No existe en todos los distritos y donde sà ­ la hay, hay variacià ³n en los grados que la componen, siendo comà ºn que comprenda 4to, 5to y 6to grado. Se trata de un paso intermedio entre la primaria y la secundaria. En tercer lugar, Secundaria, conocida en inglà ©s como high school. comprende los grados 9 a 12 y comienza a la edad de 14-15 aà ±os. Hay una gran variedad de tipos de high school, como las especializadas en preparar para college y universidad, especiales, vocacionales  o alternativas. Las personas que alcanzan los 19 aà ±os de edad y no han obtenido el diploma de high school pueden sacar una certificacià ³n alternativa. La ms conocida es el GED, que tambià ©n se puede rendir en espaà ±ol. Pero hay otras opciones, dependiendo de los estados, como por ejemplo el TASC y el HiSET. Adems, en el caso de los mexicanos es posible obtener el certificado de bachillerato de Mà ©xico sin salir de los Estados Unidos.  ¿Quà © hay sobre la educacià ³n temprana  o pre-k? La educacià ³n temprana  no es obligatoria pero se brinda en un buen nà ºmero de escuelas pà ºblicas y privadas. Comienza a partir de los 3 aà ±os y el programa Head Start promueve la participacià ³n de nià ±os de bajos recursos. Los padres o tutores interesados deben consultar con las opciones en su lugar de residencia, ya que hay grandes diferencias entre distritos y estados. Escuelas, derechos migrantes y problemtica de visas Todos los nià ±os en edad de recibir educacià ³n obligatoria, es decir, en grados K-12 tienen derecho a asistir a una escuela pà ºblica en el distrito de su residencia habitual. Esto aplica por supuesto a los ciudadanos americanos, a los residentes permanentes y  Ã‚  tambià ©n a los nià ±os indocumentados. Asà ­ lo establecià ³ claramente una sentencia de la Corte Suprema que se conoce como Plyler v. Doe. Los padres, madres o tutores que confronten problemas por su estatus migratorio o el de sus nià ±os pueden contactar con Equity and Civil Rights, explicar su problema y solicitar que se cumpla la ley. Tambià ©n pueden asistir a las escuelas pà ºblicas los nià ±os presentes en los Estados Unidos con visas derivadas, como por ejemplo, la F-2, la H-4 o la J-2. Tambià ©n los hijos de extranjeros con visas de inversià ³n E-1 o E-2 vlidas. Sin embargo, la situacià ³n es muy diferente para el caso de nià ±os que ingresan a los Estados Unidos con visa de turista. Estudiar en una escuela pà ºblica significa que se est cometiendo una infraccià ³n migratoria y cada vez es ms frecuente que se le revoque la visa al nià ±o y tambià ©n a sus padres. Son varias las opciones de visa para estudiar en Estados Unidos que se brinda a esos nià ±os. Es muy importante entender que desde el punto de vista de la ley migratoria y las escuelas es muy distinta la situacià ³n de un nià ±o indocumentado, que sà ­ puede ir a las escuelas, y la de un nià ±o que ingresa al paà ­s con visa de turista y pretende asistir a una escuela pà ºblica. Estos  nià ±os no estn protegidos por Plyler v. Doe. Idioma, educacià ³n especial, vacunas y alimentos Si los nià ±os no hablan inglà ©s o si los padres desean que hablen con fluidez inglà ©s y espaà ±ol, pueden considerar los programas de educacià ³n que se brindan en uno o ambos idiomas. Hay una gran variedad de opciones, dependiendo del lugar de residencia. Madres, padres y tutores de nià ±os con situaciones especiales, como por ejemplo autismo, epilepsia, parlisis cerebral, etc deben explorar las diversas opciones de educacià ³n especial que mejor se ajusten a las necesidades de sus hijos. Hay opciones muy diversas, desde integracià ³n a escuelas especiales. Lamentablemente, las oportunidades no son las mismas y dependen en gran medida del lugar de residencia. Entre los requerimientos para registrar nià ±os para las escuelas es muy comà ºn el de pedir el rà ©cord de vacunas, si bien esto no es igual en todos los estados y hay importantes diferencias. En esta pgina en espaà ±ol de Los Centros para el Control y Prevencià ³n de Enfermedades se explica informacià ³n muy importante sobre dà ³nde llevar al nià ±o a vacunar, cules son las vacunas y la edad para recibirlas e incluso quià ©n puede obtener ayuda econà ³mica para las vacunaciones. Finalmente, destacar que todos los nià ±os enrolados en escuelas pà ºblicas o en privadas sin fin de lucro pueden recibir asistencia de alimentos si asà ­ lo precisan. Es indiferente su estatus migratorio y/o el de sus padres ya que lo à ºnico que se tiene en cuenta es la situacià ³n alimentaria del nià ±o. El programa ms grande es el Programa Nacional de Almuerzos Escolares. Tambià ©n destacar el Programa de Desayunos Gratuitos. Estas ayudas tambià ©n estn disponibles en verano cuando las escuelas no estn en activo. Despuà ©s de la educacià ³n obligatoria La enseà ±anza superior puede seguirse en colleges o universidades. Es importante considerar el costo e intentar evitar, en la medida de lo posible, llegar al momento de recibir el tà ­tulo con mucha deuda, ya que puede ser un gran lastre. Considerar las opciones de becas, debiendo los estudiantes excelentes esforzarse y animarse y creerse que pueden optar a lo mejor. Estas son 12 universidades de à ©lite que becan a todo tipo de estudiantes, incluidos los indocumentados. Tambià ©n considerar la opcià ³n de los colegios comunitarios, que resultan ms econà ³micos, adems de brindar otras ventajas. Puntos clave: educacià ³n en Estados Unidos En Estados Unidos, la educacià ³n de los nià ±os y adolescentes es obligatoria.Tipos de escuelas: pà ºblicas (50,7 millones de estudiantes) y privadas (5,9 millones de alumnos). Tambià ©n es legal recibir educacià ³n en casa, pero cada estado regula este derecho de diferente manera.Categorà ­as de escuelas pà ºblicas: regulares, chapter y magnet.Educacià ³n obligatoria y migracià ³n: por sentencia de la Corte Suprema Plyler vs. Doe de 1982, los nià ±os indocumentados tienen derecho a estudiar en escuelas pà ºblicas. Los nià ±os con visas derivadas hijos de trabajadores temporales o estudiantes internacionales tienen tambià ©n ese derecho. Por el contrario, es ilegal estudiar con una visa de turista. Este es un artà ­culo informativo. No es asesorà ­a legal.

Worl wide needs classification or division Essay

Worl wide needs classification or division - Essay Example But nurturing and feeding them for some thirty odd years, the lesson has been learnt; countries can only help themselves and not be bothered by the immigrants. The same goes for India as she is making the border on her west as well as East side stronger. Along with Pakistan, it has thousands of kilometers of adjacent border and more than half of which has been protected with the barbed wire. And the progress on the rest is underway. Same is the case on her east border with Bangladesh, walls and wires are being put up to prevent illegal crossing over. In the past, a huge number of people have migrated, both legality and illegally, to India from Bangladesh but countries learn from their past mistakes. That’s why walls are being put up to keep away the human traffic. Some might argue that this attitude is detrimental towards the goal of a global community. All across the globe, people want more freedom, the freedom to trade and educate, and travel. But when countries develop policies that are meant to keep away possible ‘contact’ with the other country, then this is contradictory. As people want to see the world as a global village but sturdy walls, barbed wires and mines are only pushing people away from each other. On the surface, countries paint a friendly face towards each other make pacts and agreements of mutual cooperation but when it comes to exchange of people across the border, countries have opposite policies. For proper functioning of economy trade and law, division among people is necessary. For instance, a huge number of illegal migrants have crossed over from Mexico into the US in the past. When these people move to the US, they are illegal migrants and they can’t get any regular job easily. In fact they suffer more in the US as illegal migrants than stay in their homeland and earn even a small living. Moreover, such people also get involve in crimes because there are no regular jobs

Recovery and Disposal of Solid Waste in Landfills Research Paper

Recovery and Disposal of Solid Waste in Landfills - Research Paper Example Recovery operations in a mixed-waste materials recovery facility involve manual and mechanical sorting. This aids in separating recyclables, which further undergo processing to meet some technical standards. Afterwards, the mixed waste stream might be sent to a landfill for further disposal. Disposal of waste in landfills may have created problems for people and the environment. Landfills that were not properly taken care of or handled led to the creation of various problems. The problems associated with landfills made it possible for people to create sanitary landfills. These are areas designed to isolate waste from the immediate environment until it is no longer a threat. It is in this area that the waste is considered completely degraded (Ramchandra 84). The flexible membrane in liners has allowed liners to temporarily address the issue of groundwater contamination. The clay soil that lines the sides and bottom of the landfills works toward protecting the surrounding groundwater from any leachate releases. The liners are then fitted with leachate collection and removal systems, which remove leachate for treatment and disposal (Jayarama