Running head Health, Stress, and Coping Essay Example

Running head Health, Stress, and Coping Paper The chapter outlines the biological, psychological, social and cultural factors that influence health and illness. The potential stressors that increase the risk of illness are stressful experiences or situations that are uncontrollable or chronic lasting for at least six months. Some of them include work related problems, noise, bereavement and loss, poverty, powerlessness and low status. According to health researchers, there are three factors due to which these chronic stressors do not affect everyone in the same way .They are (1).Individual physiological differences in the cardiovascular, endocrine, immune and other bodily systems (2) psychological factors such as attitudes, emotions, perceptions of events (3) people’s behaviour under stress. The Physiology of Stress We will write a custom essay sample on Running head Health, Stress, and Coping specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Running head Health, Stress, and Coping specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Running head Health, Stress, and Coping specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Research in the area of stress began in the year, 1956, when Canadian physician, Hans Selya (1907-1982) published â€Å"The stress of life†. He described about general adaptation syndrome which is a series of physiological responses to stressors that occur in three phases namely alarm, resistance and exhaustion. Selya believed that some stress is positive and productive while some negative stress that is unavoidable may overwhelm body’s ability to cope. Stress and Body   The modern research on stress focused on the hypothalamus which sends messages to endocrine glands that activate the sympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system releasing epinephrine and norepineprine. Further to this, it is now evident that when body is under stress the activity along the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal cortex called as HPA axis is initiated. The chemical messages from hypothalamus communicate with pituitary which in turn sends messages to outer part of the adrenal glands that secrete cortisol. If cortisol and stress hormones stay for too long they can be harmful contributing for hypertension, immune disorders, other physical ailments and possible emotional problems. The Mind-Body link To understand further on stressors and variations in people’s reaction to stress, an interdisciplinary specialty with focus on psychological processes, nervous, endocrine and immune systems called as psychoneuroimmunology or PNI has emerged. Research shows that chronic stress can weaken or suppress the white blood cells of the immune system. Not all people are affected in the same way by chronic stressors and environmental condition. The reason behind the differential responsiveness to stress could be attributed more to the perception about the stressor. This simply means that human beings show signs of stress when they feel crowded than when the place is crowed.  Ã‚   Therefore psychological factors play a major role. The Psychology of Stress Emotions and Illness- The effects of negative attitudes and emotions can affect the course of the illness and of recovery. Research shows that feeling anxious, depressed and helpless for example can delay the healing of wounds after surgery, whereas feeling hopeful can significantly speed healing .Efforts to link emotions and illness occurred with research on Type A personality in 1970s. The main ingredient in Type A personality turned out to be antagonistic hostility which is related to heart disease. Chronic depression also is a risk factor that is linked to heart disease. Positive Emotions are helpful in that they are associated with better health and longevity.   Psychologists are trying to find out what it is about feeling happy, cheerful and hopeful that could protect a person from getting sick. Perhaps, people with positive emotions have an easy going temperament and also have better social support. Managing Negative Emotions- As negative emotions are risky, trying to suppress those means processing the thought more frequently. One way to get rid of negative emotions comes from research on benefits of confession and forgiveness.It promotes empathy, the ability to see the situation from another person perspective. Optimism and Pessimism- Research indicates that optimism helps in promoting health and well-being than pessimism. The feeling of optimism is related to having a sense of control. According to Rotter, 1990, locus of control refers to general expectation about whether the results of your actions are under your own control (internal locus) or beyond your control (external locus).The greatest threat to health and well-being occurs when people feel caught in a situation they cannot escape. Two ways of controlling feelings can be through primary or secondary control that can help to reduce or even eliminate the relationship between stressors and health. An effort to modify reality by changing other people, the situation, or events is called as primary control while secondary control is an effort to accept reality by changing attitudes, goals or emotions. Coping with Stress Coping involves active efforts to manage demands that feel stressful. Different forms of coping with stress include using physical strategies, problem oriented strategies, cognitive strategies or social strategies. Some of the physical strategies include handling physiological tension by reducing body’s arousal through meditation, relaxation, and massage. Studies also show that physically fit people have fewer health problems. Some situations demand problem focused coping skills which depend on the nature of the problem. When there are problems that cannot be changed like losing a job, or chronic illness then using cognitive coping methods will help to change the way we think about the problem. The three ways for coping includes reappraising the situation, learning from experience and making social comparisons. Apart from these individual mechanisms of coping taking help of social support is another important approach that facilitates coping. Family members, friends, neighbors, and co-workers can lend support and provide help. Studies also show that social support enhances health and bolsters immune system. Another   better way of coping with stress is by helping others .Healing through helping enables   people to gain strength by focusing   less on their woes which can stimulate optimism and restore feelings of control. How much control do we have over our health? The process of coping does not involve elimination of stress but to deal with the stressors effectively. In the course of dealing with stressors, illness and health we have control over some psychological and social factors like negative emotions, pessimism, external locus of control, hostility, depression, and lack of supportive friends etc. Other three predictors of longevity are not smoking, eating a healthful diet and exercising regularly.   Therefore coping with stress means learning to live and deal with the stressors, problems and the pain.

Female Reproduction Essays - Human Female Reproductive System

Female Reproduction Essays - Human Female Reproductive System Female Reproduction Female Reproduction Lesson 1 ovary - a gland that produces estrogen and ova. Ova are female reproductive cells. Ova also are called eggs. An ovum is one egg. fallopian tube - a four inch long tube through which ova move from an ovary to the uterus. A female has two Fallopian tubes; one near each ovary. uterus - an organ that supports a fertilized egg during pregnancy. The uterus is muscular and stretches when a baby is growing inside. cervix - the lower part of the uterus that connects to the vagina. During childbirth, the baby passes through the cervix into the vagina. vagina - a tube that connects to the outside of the body. The vagina is very muscular. It stretches when a mother gives birth. Female External Reproductive Organs - clitoris, mons pubis, labias, vaginal opening Clitoris - Small knob of tissue in front of the vaginal opening. A rich supply of nerve endings and blood vessels. Only part of the female sexual anatomy with no known reproductive function. Has an important function in producing sexual arousal. Exposed portion is the glans. Mons Pubis - Rounded fatty pad of tissue, covered with pubic hair. Located on anterior side of the female body. The mons pubis is directly on top of the pubic bones, top of pubic symphysis. Provides protection to some degree for the pubic symphysis. Labia majora - The outer fold of tissue on either side of the vaginal opening. Labia minora - The inner fold of skin on either side of the vaginal opening. These inner folds extend forward forming a hood like covering over the clitoris. They serve as a line of protection against germs entering the body and also serve a function in sexual arousal. Both the majora and minora are rich in nerve endings and blood vessels. Vaginal opening - Becomes visible when the labias are parted. Just inside the vaginal opening may be a thin membrane called the hymen. Hymen - This membrane stretches across the opening of the vagina. It has no known function and is not present in all females. The hymen usually has several openings in it, thus allowing for the passage of the menstrual flow. Misconceptions have developed throughout history: an intact hymen was the sign of a virgin, with first intercourse and the tearing of the hymen, a female experienced pain and bleeding. Neither of these things is true. Some females are born without a hymen. Others may tear the hymen through a variety of physical activities - often without even knowing it. Some hymen tissue is very flexible and may stay intact during intercourse. Because there are usually openings in the hymen, sperm released at the vaginal opening can swim into the vagina and up to an egg cell, resulting in fertilization and pregnancy. Thus, a female could become pregnant and still have an intact hymen. Sterility Usually takes a number of forms. Once cause of female sterility is the blocking of the Fallopian tubes. The egg cell cannot pass into the uterus. Another cause is the female's failure to ovulate. Endometriosis, a condition in which the inner lining of the uterus (or tissue similar to the tissue) the endometrium is present abnormally in the abdominal cavity. Surgery can usually correct this condition. Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) Refers to a variety of symptoms that some females experience before their menstrual periods. Usually experienced two weeks before the menstrual period or several days before it. Many females never experience PMS. Symptoms may include nervous tension, anxiety, irritability, bloating, weight gain, depression, mood swings, and fatigue. More common in women in their 30s. PMS is related to a hormonal imbalance. Others attribute the cause to a nutritional deficiency. Most doctors recommend a diet and life-style changes as the first treatment of PMS. Encourage women to find ways to reduce stress. PMS sufferers need to evaluate their diets, reducing the intake of sugar, salt, caffeine, nicotine, and alcoholic beverages. They should also increase their intake of B vitamins, magnesium, leafy green vegetables, whole grains, and fruit. Finally a regular exercise program should be developed. Dysmenorrhea (dis-men-or-e-uh) Painful contraction in the uterus during menstruation. Relief can usually be had by a warm bath or by doing certain exercises as outlined by a

The Tempest for Shakespeare Act I Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

The Tempest for Shakespeare Act I - Assignment Example In case of a shipwreck, everyone would die. The professionals, nobles and the servants, who make up the mix of characters, all included. In terms of the plot point, the Tempest is central to the plot and begins with the confusion caused by the storm and conflict between classes that continues through the play. 2. The two factions are generally comprised of a split of the noble men and commoners. It is a display of the different political and social class existent. The noble are the masters such as Alonso, Sebastian, Antonio and Gonzalo. The commoners are the subjects and servants such as the boatswain and the mariners. The boatswain is a master in the case of controlling the ship in the storm at sea whom the nobles cannot do yet at the same time is a commoner on land. The passage means that Gonzalo, a noble, is the character caught in between the factions. This can be attributed to how he thinks that the boatswain is the type of person with a destiny to die by hanging and not drowning. Gonzalo is suggesting that the boat would not capsize because that is not his fate and thus is their cable of rescue and if not they are doomed to die. 3. Gonzalo implies that the Boatswain looks like a man brought forth into the world to be hanged. Gonzalo has these great hopes that fate will not let him be drowned, rather that the ship be saved in order that the Boatswain can fulfil his destiny to be hanged. The ugliness of the Boatswain also gives Gonzalo the hope that the ship will be saved. If that would not be the case (the hanging of the Boatswain) then the ship would capsize and they would

My personal Activities Statement Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

My Activities - Personal Statement Example In this case, I involved myself in cleaning the community waste since this is the recommended way of presenting environmental problems in the media. I also involved myself in conservation of the environment since it is my major area of interest. When a chance is available, I enjoy working in the field. Also, in the same 2007, I joined in the composition contest at the International Alkema Contest (IACC). I succeeded in the first IACC edition. The composers irrespective of the age could subscribe to the contest. The composition contest contained all styles of preferable classical music with popular music like rock, folk, pop, and jazz. I received the guitar and the piano award after being the best pianist. In 2008, I was among the competitors in the National Mathematics competition. I managed to enter the semi-finals that were much tougher that I could expect. The competition consisted of 20 multiple choices with a two division grading criteria. I managed to win the competition and awarded $1000. In 2009, I engaged in robot composition. As a group of five students, we designed a team brand robot which was programmed to perform instructed tasks. We gained popularity from the competition since it was successful. The robot could do minor mathematical calculations within a restricted time limit. In 2010, I saw old men struggling at homes due to their poor health. I took the priority to join in community volunteer activities in order to nurse the old men at home. Most of the men were unresponsive, depressed, and mentally disturbed due to health and family issues. As a group of volunteers, we were able to nurse them through special guidance. In early 2011, I gave not only a motivational talk, but also an educational guidance basing on career choices among the high school students. I was able to visit Thomas Jefferson High School for science and Technology and Oxford Academy in US for the talk and guidance. In 2012, I joined the

Discussion 6 Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Discussion 6 - Research Paper Example The reasons for this gendered violence range from many factors, from psychological to economical reasons, and I will attempt to elaborate more on these triggers of violence and also offer solutions marital partners can take to put an end to domestic partner violence. Firestone claims that there are two very important psychological factors that influence why domestic partner violence occurs; a "destructive thought process," and what is called a "fantasy bond," (Firestone, n.p). The destructive thought process that Firestone mentions refers to the case where the abuser has this thought in his head that he/she must abuse their partner; the abuser keeps imagining negative things that he/she assumes that their partner is thinking of them, for instance, "She/he is controlling you. Dont let her/him act like you are weak," (Firestone, n.p). In my opinion, men are more likely to act upon this inner voice than are women, because there are external pressures from society on men to act a certain way; men today are still expected to be strong and dominant and powerful, and when imagine that their wives are acting in a way that makes them look unmanly, they lash out at their wives on the whims of this "inner voice," (Firestone, n.p). Also, the "fantasy bond" that Firestone mentions, refers to the belief a person has that he/she is only complete with their partner; this belief also supports the idea that one person in the relationship has power over the other (Firestone, n.p). For me, I believe men like to imagine that they are in control in this "fantasy bond," since patriarchal values extol them to be more powerful than women; this entitles men to physically abuse their partners. Panda and Agarwal offer an economic reason for why men are more likely to physically abuse their female partners; for him, womens economic dependence on men sets the scene for them being physically abused, (Panda & Agarwal, page 824). He claims for example that when a woman has her own house, the

Educating On Sleep Disorders Sleep Apnea Nursing Essay

Educating On Sleep Disorders Sleep Apnea Nursing Essay Sleep disorders in general is a cluster of syndromes characterized by the disturbances in a persons sleep. It is a medical disorder in which the persons quantity, quality, or behaviors in sleep is interfered. This normally results in poor physical, mental and emotional functioning. As sleep is one of the human bodys biological rhythms, it is not startling that there are many different varieties of sleep disorders, each with its own symptoms, causes, and treatments. The symptoms of these sleep disorders must be a persistent problem for an effective diagnosis to be done, persistent enough to cause the patient considerable emotional distress, and also interfere with basic social and occupational functioning as well as daily activities. Besides that, sleep cycles differ with a persons age, in which children and adolescents usually have longer sleep cycle than do older people. Because of this variation, doctors or medical experts always take the patients age into account when detecting a sleep disorder. Sleep disorders are categorized based on its causes. Primary sleep disorders are sleep disorders that are not caused by other external factors. Primary sleep disorders can be further divided into two groups. First, there is the primary sleep disorder in which the person affected suffers from alterations in the quality of their sleep. As an example, the most imperative type is insomnia, which is the difficulty in sleeping that lasts for at least a month. Other examples of include hypersomnia, narcolepsy, and sleep apnea. On the contrary, there are primary sleep disorders in which the behavior of the patient is severely affected. It is also known as disorders of physiological arousal during sleep. Examples of this include nightmares, sleep terror, and somnambulism. Besides the primary sleep disorders, there are three groups of sleep disorders that are linked to substance abuse or other physical or mental disorders. First of all, there are sleep disorders related to men tal disorders. Numerous mental disorders, especially depression, can easily set off sleep disturbances. Next, there are also sleep disorders due to medical conditions. Patients suffering from chronic neurological conditions possibly will develop sleep disorders as well. Lastly, there are substance-induced sleep disorders too. The abuse of alcohol, drugs and caffeine regularly generates sleep disorders. In addition to substance and alcohol abuse, prescription medications can easily affect sleep patterns as well. For the diagnosis of sleep disorders, the history of problems faced by the patient is necessary. These steps are useful starting points during assessment of the problem, and the doctor may also speak to other family members to get more information about the patients symptoms. This is important as the informations obtained are mainly the patients symptoms and behaviors that the patient cannot remember. The treatment for a sleep disorder generally depends on what is causing it. Mainly, the treatment for each sleep disorder is different, ranging from surgery to altering the patients lifestyle. However, there are also several alternative treatments for certain sleep disorders. Among them are meditation practice, yoga, and breathing exercises. Meditation can keep patients from obsessing about sleep or worrying too much about their own sleep disorders. The use of melatonin is extremely common in the treatment of sleep disorders, whereby it is a hormone already present in our body which is secreted by the pineal gland in our brains. These unorthodox methods are always trial and errors, as it does not work for every patient and for every sleep disorder. Last but not least, the prognosis of each sleep disorder depends on the specific disorder itself. The prognosis for sleep disorders that are caused by other external factors relies on the ability to overcome these external factors first. Conversely, the prognosis of primary sleep disorders is affected by several conditions, mostly about the personal life of the patient and the way the patient leads his or her life in the past. Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder which is very serious and is a potentially life-threatening condition. It is far more common than many people think it is as generally patients have absolutely no idea that he or she has it and patients tend to be skeptical when being told that they are diagnosed with it. Generally, sleep apnea is known as a breathing disorder, severely affecting the ability to breathe properly during sleep. Described as brief interruptions of breathing, patients are oblivious of having troubles breathing, even when they are already wide awake, or upon awakening. Sleep apnea is divided into two categories, the first being central sleep apnea and the other one being obstructive sleep apnea. Central sleep apnea, which is atypical, takes place when appropriate brain signals are not sent to set off respirations in breathing muscles. On the other hand, obstructive sleep apnea, which is very often found, is triggered by the inability of air to flow in and out for regular res piration process to persist, despite the fact that attempts to breathe continue. A patient suffering from sleep apnea experiences brief halts in breathing, which is involuntary, and is accompanied by snoring for almost all of the cases reported. However, not everyone who snores suffers from sleep apnea, which is a common misconception among the general masses. The awareness of having the choking feeling in patients is common, and this is mainly due to the irregular process of respiration. As a result, morning headaches have a tendency to trouble patients, as well as excessive feeling of sleepiness during the day, which gives the wrong impression to the general masses that they are either staying up until the wee hours of the morning or that they are nocturnal. This wrong impression given could dampen the hope of graduates looking for a job or would cause employers to wrongly dismiss their employees who are just suffering from this condition. Fatigue is also a common symptom in patie nts, reducing the efficiency in carrying out daily activities by these patients. They experience such excessive fatigue as though as they had just finished a marathon, but in reality sleeping is the only activity that they had accomplished. The detection of sleep apnea has to be as early as possible and it has to be treated accurately because the association of sleep apnea with chronic diseases is very common and this could pose a serious threat to the well being of a patient if left unnoticed. Even though sleep apnea is found to be more distinctive in men, it may be under diagnosed in the other sex. Everybody of all ages may have sleep apnea, which makes it a very common sleep disorder. Usually, those who snore loudly, and are overweight as well, have a higher chance of suffering from sleep apnea. In certain cases, sleep apnea seems to run in the family, generating a possible genetic basis that sleep apnea is passed down from generation to generation. To find the proper treatment for sleep apnea, we must first understand what causes this predicament. In general, mechanical and structural problems in the passage of air flow in a person lead to breathing difficulties which in turn causes sleep apnea. Other factors that cause the passage of air flow in a person to be blocked include the presence of excess amount of tissue, which is mostly found in obese people. While efforts to breathe with a narrowed passage of air flow continue, heavy snoring occurs. Intriguingly, the perso n is clueless that he or she is snoring. On the contrary, taking alcohol increases the frequency of breathing difficulties occurring in people with sleep apnea. On every occurrence of breathing difficulty, our brain responds by reopening the passage of air flow. Once a loud snort or gasp is heard, this signals that the breathing process of the patient has resumed normally. However, frequent occurrence of this event, although necessary, prevents the patient from enjoying a good nights sleep. In most cases, the spouses of patients are the first person to suspect something amiss in their respective partners. Heavy snoring for instance is a cue that something might be wrong with the process of sleeping. Another symptom which can be easily detected by the patients spouse is the apparent struggle to respire. When symptoms of sleep apnea start appearing, it is vital to immediately seek medical attention for a thorough evaluation of the sleep disorder. The process of evaluating a sleep disorder is never simple, as there are many reasons as to why a persons sleep is disturbed. For example, polysomnography is one of the ways to evaluate a person for sleep apnea. Under normal circumstances, these diagnostic tests are carried out in a sleep center, but further advancement in technology in recent times have created the option for patients who opt for the test to be done in the comfort of their homes. The treatment for sleep apnea differs in each patient, whereby a type of treatment only works for certain patients. Thus, special, one of a kind therapy for sleep apnea has to be tailored to the patient based on several factors. For sleep apnea, medications are deemed useless in the treatment of the problem. Furthermore, oxygen administration to patients is very controversial, as results show irregularity in the effectiveness of this method in each patient, some responding positively to it while others respond negatively to it. As an alternative, sleep apnea mouthpiece helps to get rid of this condition in less severe cases or to diminish the degree of discomfort due to sleep apnea. Usually made out of plastic, they are generally dental appliances which prevent any unwanted obstructions in the passage of air flow. This mouthpiece is used at night, or specifically during sleep. Another interesting fact is that it is also utilized by people who snore, not only patients suffering from sleep apnea but also healthy people who just happen to snore when they sleep. As the problem of snoring is solved with this mouthpiece, it is also widely known as the stop snoring mouthpiece. Furthermore, each mouthpiece is specially made by orthodontists for every patient. Hence, the cost of this mouthpiece varies from patient to patient. Until now, the most effective solution to sleep apnea is still the continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment. Because of this, the prescription of the utilization of CPAP treatment a re very often done, both by medical practitioners and the general masses alike who are familiar with this method of treatment. The CPAP treatment is in the form of the usage of a CPAP mask that allows patients to have a good nights sleep, free from any respiration difficulties. As the array of CPAP treatment available in the market nowadays is vast, ranging from CPAP masks to CPAP pillows, it is extremely vital for a patient to undertake researches on what qualities of a CPAP mask that is suitable and is needed by the patient. Moreover, even medical practitioners are inclined to ask their patients to find their own masks for maximum suitability and the best value for their money spent on it. In general, the most common CPAP treatment are the CPAP masks, especially those triangular in shape ones and covers both the patients mouth and nose perfectly with straps around it to hold the mask in place. On another note, there are also dental appliances that act as a solution to sleep apnea. These appliances help in the reposition of the lower jaw and the tongue as well. Uniquely, this distinctive method does not only work for mild sleep apnea patients, but also people who snore when they sleep and are free from sleep apnea. Side effects however, are present for this method. Hence, a visit to the orthodontist is necessary for patients who wish to undergo this method of treatment. For sleep apnea, the last resort for some patients is surgery. With surgery, everyone is aware that there are risks in undergoing it and none of them is completely successful. Those who deem surgery as a risk free method are merely ignorant as more than one surgical procedure is obligatory before the benefits set in. In addition to that, surgery that treats obesity is essential for morbidly obese sleep apnea patients, as obesity is one of the main reasons for sleep apnea to occur. Other than focusing on slee p apnea involving children and adults alike, senior citizens as well are prone to this condition, and alarmingly sleep apnea is under diagnosed in elderly patients as many people deem that senior citizens who snore are very much normal and there is no need for any worry and concern. Due to this erroneous belief, this group of patients has an increased risk to suffer from other health problems related to sleep apnea. Furthermore, they will not be able to enjoy life as much as other healthy senior citizens as sleep apnea results in a poor quality of life, and more so when there is no one being concerned enough to bring these patients to a medical practitioner for a thorough medical test. In addition to that, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in children is proven to go hand-in-hand with sleep apnea, creating an indefinite link between the two conditions. Snoring, mainly due to breathing difficulties, causes a child to sleep poorly and this leads to attention problems the following day. This in hand, forms the relationship between both conditions whereby sleep apnea is believed to be one of the main culprits behind children tossing and turning in bed all night long, or ADHD. Sleep apnea in the form of obstructive sleep apnea greatly affects the health of type 2 diabetes patients as well. During obstructed respiration in sleep apnea patients, the glucose control will be harmfully affected, deteriorating the problems of type 2 diabetes faced by the patient. Worse still, poor glucose control in the body leads to even further health complications in the near future. Besides that, cognitive impairment has time after time been associated with sleep apnea, and this is even more distinctive in older women than in other sex or age groups. As with both the associations above, cognitive impairment is also due to the stymied respiration in patients of sleep apnea. The correlation between cognitive impairment and sleep apnea is a positive one, as the latter gets more severe, cognitive impairment worsens as well. Lastly, patients with sleep apnea beyond doubt have an augmented risk of being involved in a road accident. However, what strikes fear in researchers the most is undoubtedly the fact that sleep apnea is much likely under diagnosed, meaning that drivers on the road who are absolutely unaware that they are suffering from sleep apnea and thus, increases the number of road accidents all over the world. This is due to daytime sleepiness in patients, which is also due to respiration difficulties faced by patients during sleep. Therefore, the person driving next to you on the road could be suffering from sleep apnea and accidents could happen anytime and anywhere in this case. As the saying goes, prevention is better than cure. Hence, it is always vital to undergo a thorough evaluation to check for any sleep disorders and to cure it as soon as possible. By taking this measure of prevention, less number of cases of road accidents will be reported and fewer lives would be lost unnecessarily. To sum it up concisely, sleep disorders are basically conditions which have a bearing on a persons sleep. In this modern society whereby time is regarded as an extremely important asset to ones life, sleeping is forced to take a backseat in order to give way for personal ambitions and the aspiration to succeed. Thus, sleep disorders start to creep into peoples life, and usually acts like a silent killer to peoples wellbeing as health problems related to sleep disorders occur, causing them to be confused as they are totally oblivious to their own sleep disorder and have an impression that they are perfectly healthy. In sleep apnea, not many people care to worry about it as one of its symptom, which is snoring, is way too commonly seen. As stated before, everyone has the risk of getting sleep apnea, from children to senior citizens of both genders, and like any other conditions or health problems, sleep apnea has its own treatment and therapies. It is only up to every individual to be aware of what sleep apnea is, how it occurs, what are the symptoms related to it, the ways of treating it, and how it affects a persons wellbeing. Hence, if only sleep apnea is as widely known as other health problems such as cancer or high blood pressure, then it will not be under diagnosed anymore and precisely less people would be caught unaware by this condition. Therefore, we should educate ourselves and everyone around us about sleep apnea and sleep disorders in general. As the saying goes, the greatest wealth is health, and for that reason not even a single health condition should be neglected at all for the best interest of everyone.

Closure of Public OHV Areas Essay -- Off Highway Vehicles Transportati

Closure of Public OHV Areas Some years ago a new form of recreation came about known as an Off Highway Vehicle(OHV). Today these high powered, light weight vehicles come in many forms with anywhere from four to two wheels. There are many areas across the United States for such vehicles to be driven but as of today there are some groups out there who wish to close the areas in which these vehicles can be used. One area in particular, located outside of Yuma on the California and Arizona border has been subjected to many threats recently and those who use the land for its recreational purposes have had to fight to keep the land that was originally granted to them for use by the US government. This one area is what many would call a second home. Land has already been shut off to recreational use and if unchecked these activist groups could take away the rest. A few years ago the American Sand Association agreed to have over 49,000 acres of the imperial sand dunes in southern California temporarily closed (James Gilbert). This would allow the Center for Biological Diversity(CBD) to conduct a study on a plant that they say is endangered. They said that with the use of OHV’s in close proximity to these plants they would soon be extinct. â€Å"After extensive research by both parties it was found that the survival of the Pierson's Milkvetch Plant (PMV) has no correlation whatsoever to the congestion of OHV’s in a particular area† (Mr.Dune). One would think that this would leave the activists with nothing left to complain about and that the re-opening of the dunes would be the next step in the progression of the cycle. To assume this would be a large fallacy though because as soon as the CBD’s argument of the endangered plant ... ...ease. To the citizens in the rest of the United States things can be totally taken out of context and portrayed by the CBD in any way they feel is necessary. With the growing numbers of people joining the American Sand Association and other such groups to show their support for the re-opening of the dunes, things will soon get complicated for the CBD and they may finally decide to back down from their podium. Citations †¢ ABCNEWS.com. ABC Network Affiliates. 23 March 2003 http://abcnews.go.com/sections/wnt/DailyNews/dunes_folo020419.html †¢ JAMES GILBERT. "Dune closure draws mixed reviews." YumaSun Nov 22, 2002. 23 March 2003 http://yumasun.com/artman/publish/articles/story_2778.shtml †¢ Mr. Dune. Mr. Dune Speaks Out American Sand Association. 23 March 2003 http://www.off-road.com/dunes/speak/special_112000.html

Psychology †A Beautiful Mind Essay

A Beautiful Mind was a film released in 2001 directed by Ron Howard and largely based on the life of the Nobel Prize – winning mathematician, John Forbes Nash. It was a film adaptation of the book of Sylvia Nasar of the same title. The screen adaptation was written by Akiva Goldsman. The film explored the life of John Nash as he developed paranoid schizophrenia and suffered delusional episodes starting when he studied at Princeton University. The movie showed how this condition has impacted his wife and friends. John Nash, played by Russell Crowe, entered as a graduate student at Princeton University for being a recipient of the Carnegie Prize, a prominent academic award in mathematics. Included in the prize is a guaranteed single room accommodation but John Nash was surprised to see Charles Herman, played by Paul Bettany, who greeted and informed him that he is going to be his roommate. Charles, a literature student, soon became John’s best friend. John also got acquainted with a group of other gifted math and science graduate students and formed a discomforted friendship with them. John one time revealed to Charles that he is more at ease with numbers than with people. This did not surprise that group after they witnessed one time how disastrous his attempts were at having a chat with some women at a local bar. John had repudiated going to class since he viewed it as beneath him. He wasted most of his time scribbling on the windows in an attempt on solving a variety of mathematical equations and ideas. His classes were amused with but still recognized John’s talents. His roommate Charles both encouraged him and attempted to keep him sane. But with so many skipped classes, John was informed by the headmaster of Princeton that he could not commence on his graduate work until he has completed a thesis paper. This encouraged John to look for a really inventive idea for his thesis paper. John was finally motivated with his successful work in governing dynamics concept, a theory in mathematical economics, after he watched four beautiful women walked in at the local bar one night. Although he was spurred by his classmates into making a pass at the prettiest of the four, Nash instead started discussing about Adam Smith’s economic principles and their significance (or not) to the battle of the sexes. All of sudden he hurried out of the bar to start working on his theory which he called game theory – the mathematics of competition. John accepted an esteemed appointment at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) after he completed his studies at Princeton University together with his friends Sol (played by Adam Goldberg) and Bender (played by Anthony Rapp) both also coming out of Princeton University. After five years at MIT and while lecturing a class on calculus, he left an exceptionally fascinating problem on the board that he challenged his students to answer. One of his students Alicia Larde (played by Jennifer Connelly) turned up at his office to talk about the problem. From there, the two developed a good friendship, fell in love and later married. John met by chance Charles, his former roommate, on a return visit to Princeton. John also met Charles’ young nice Marcee (played by Vivien Cardone) and adored her. John was invited to a top secret facility of the Department of Defense in the Pentagon to solve an intricate encryption of an alleged enemy communication. Amazingly John figured out the code mentally that left the other code breakers bewildered. In the same facility John met the enigmatic William Parcher (played by Ed Harris), who claimed to be a member of the United States Department of Defense. William monitored John’s work from a viewing room above that is partially covered up at the back of a screen. William provided John with a new project to search for patterns and clues in newspapers and magazines presumably to prevent a plot by the Soviets. He was required by William to write a report of what he found and deliver the reports in a particular mailbox covertly. John became progressively more obsessed and suspicious and began to act unpredictably after he was allegedly pursued by Russian agents and a gunfire exchange in one of his clandestine deliveries. Alicia reported to a psychiatric hospital after she saw John’s worsening unpredictable behavior. When John delivered a guest lecture at Princeton University, he became conscious that he was being kept under surveillance by a group of intimidating people. He tried to escape but this group sedated him by force and dispatched him to a psychiatric facility. This confinement further convinced John that the Russians are striving to obtain information from him and regarded the psychiatric facility staff as Soviet kidnappers. One time John crazily attempted to take out an alleged implant from his arm leading to too much bleeding. The implant was allegedly given by the Pentagon. Alicia went to see the mailbox and recovered the top secret documents that John delivered in a frantic attempt to help John. She was surprised to see that all the â€Å"top secret† documents were unopened. John was dealt with this evidence and he was convinced at last that he has been hallucinating. He was confronted with the fact that the Department of Defense agent William Parcher and John’s clandestine task of decoding Russian messages were all hallucinations. He was even more surprised to learn that his friend and former roommate Charles and his niece Marcee were also merely offshoots of his mind. This was confirmed when John was informed that there was no Charles Herman enrolled and stayed in Princeton in the same time and the same room as him. John was subjected to a succession of insulin shock therapy sessions and was later released on the requirement that he consented to taking antipsychotic medication. The drugs have negative side-effects that have an effect on John’s emotional and sexual connection with his wife and most considerably, his intellectual ability. With these frustrations, John stopped taking his antipsychotic medication in secret and hid away the pills that resulted to a relapse of John’s psychosis with Alicia not being aware of it. In one occasion, John was bathing his infant son and was distracted and wandered away into the grove of trees beyond their backyard. Alicia at that time was in the backyard hanging laundry when she noticed that the back gate was opened. She found out that John has converted a deserted shed in the grove of trees into a workshop for John’s assignments for Parcher. With this realization, Alicia rushed to the house to confront John and just returned on time to save their infant child from drowning in the bathtub. John asserted that his friend and former roommate Charles was looking after their son when he went out to the grove. This left Alicia in disbelief and she immediately got the phone to ask for emergency assistance from the psychiatric hospital. All of a sudden John saw Parcher who was encouraging him to kill Alicia. John rejected Parcher’s instruction in anger but he saw Parcher suddenly pointing a gun at Alicia. John sprang at Parcher in response but ended up accidently thumping Alicia to the ground, scaring her all the more. Alicia ran away from the house in panic and fear with their child. John blocked Alicia in front of her car to foil her from going away. In the middle of the confusion, John came to the realization that Charles’ niece Marcee is a hallucination since she continued to look precisely the same age and remained a little girl even though years have went by since they first met. With this awareness, John told Alicia that Marcee never gets old. It was the turning point for John when he acknowledged that even if Parcher, Charles and Marcee appear totally real, they are actually just figments of his imagination. John and Alicia recognized that they are caught with the dilemma of John’s intellectual struggles with the antipsychotic drugs and his hallucinations. They both made the decision to strive to live with John’s abnormal condition. At one time, John intentionally bade farewell to Charles, Marcee and Parcher forever in his effort to pay no attention to his hallucinations and not nourish his psychological demons. Nevertheless he expressed his gratitude to Charles for being his best friend all those years and he said farewell to Marcee and told both of them that he would not talk to them any longer. Even with that, Charles and Marcee continued to hang around with Charles scorning John for bringing an end to their friendship but John has trained himself on how to ignore them. John grew older and made contact with one of his old friend from his Princeton years and intellectual adversary Martin Hansen (played by Josh Lucas) who was now the Princeton mathematics department head. Martin gave the authorization for John to work out of the library and audit classes. Albeit John still experienced hallucinations and now taking newer antipsychotic medications, he eventually was able to live with and for the most part ignored his psychotic occurrences. John adapted to his situation in steps and amusingly verified any new friends and contacts to make sure that they are actually real people and not hallucinations. In the end, John secured the opportunity to teach again. His fellow professors paid tribute to him for his accomplishments in mathematics. John went on to win the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics for his ground-breaking work on game theory. In the Nobel Prize awarding ceremony, John especially thanked Alicia for being with him the whole time with his journey from madness to sanity. As they left the awards auditorium in Stockholm, John saw Charles, Marcee and Parcher who looked at him with empty facial expressions. Alicia asked John what was wrong and John replied, â€Å"Nothing, Nothing at all. † The script of the movie differs significantly with the actual details of John Nash’s life. There are discrepancies with some of the events and characters around John Nash in the film but those are not the focus of this paper. This paper is centered on the accuracy of the film with regards to the field of psychology. One difficulty that the makers of the movie experienced was on how to visually represent stress and mental illness within an individual’s mind (e. g. John Nash). The film showed John suffering from visual and auditory hallucinations when in real life his hallucinations were completely auditory. The film depicted John Nash developing schizophrenic hallucinations in graduate school although he did not develop it not until a few years later. The part of the movie when John Nash said that he was taking newer medication around the same time as the Nobel Prize in 1994 was also not true since he did not take any antipsychotic medication since 1970. The film staff purposely added that statement since they believed that without it they think the film is supporting the idea that schizophrenics can get healed without taking any medication. The movie portrayed a patient with schizophrenia very well. It was very impressively done as the movie sequence was well planned too. While watching the movie, one could never guessed that his friend in the university was a mere visual hallucination. It reflected patients with schizophrenia so well with regards to their level of functioning. Based on the literature I have read, symptoms and manifestations of the patient with schizophrenia in the movie was properly and accurately portrayed. Schizophrenia is one of the leading causes of disability all over the world. This mental disorder is characterized and illustrated with delusions, hallucinations and paranoia (Woodham & Peters, 2004). A chemical imbalance in the brain is contemplated to be its cause, however, it still is believed to be unknown. Contribution of both genetic and environmental factors still remain unclear up to this time, though, it cause susceptible people to develop this mental disorder. In addition, the use of drugs activates some cases of schizophrenia. Evidence and proofs from researches and sudies showed that the early stages of this disability are critical in the formation and prediction of its course as well as its outcome (Frangou & Byrne, 2000). With this, clinical studies and researches are focusing on the early stages of the illness since early detection and treatment regimen may yield better prognosis and functional outcome. Typically, the first and early episodes of schizophrenia occurs in the early twenties or even late teenage years. Its early recognition may sometimes be masked by its insidious nature of the onset of the disease as it occurs with history and background of language problems, cognitive ability and behaviour. Antisocial behaviour, social withdrawal, failure to be motivated and obsessional ideas manifest this mental disorder. Auditory hallucinations and delusions are the most common reported pyschotic manifestations from schizophrenic individuals. Once this mental disorder is diagnosed, patients may then require hospitalization to prevent them from harming themselves as well as others. In order to control its symptoms, antipsychotic drugs are prescribed. Psychotherapy to these patients are also advised. Most of these patients return to the community and recommence their normal lives. The primary goal of treatment once patients are diagnosed with schizophrenia is to manage acute psychotic episodes. Rapid remission is necessary with the use of the most efficient and tolerated medications. The use of low dosage of typical neuroleptics and atypical antipsychotic medications may be the fisrt choice treatment regimen for the early onset of the disorder (Frangou & Byrne, 2000). It is very important to be vigilant with the first onset of manifestations as studies have shown that patients are more responsive to treatment during this stage regardless of whatever antipsychotic medications being prescribed and used. Prognosis for recovery is nearly 80% especially with patients treated right after the first episode of schizophrenia. Second psychotic episodes post treatment after five to seven years is not uncommon. It is not recommended to withdraw from the medications taken right away. Gradual withrawal from its treatment regimen is required to refrain from getting adverse withrawal reactions. Clozapine had been the licensed drug in the United Kingdom used for the treatment and management of patients with schizophrenia who responded poorly to the standard antipsychotic treatment regimen (Frangou & Byrne, 2000). Patient support from family, relatives and friends are important during schizophrenic patients’ recovery period. These patients have a hard time reintegrating into the community. Educational and employment underachievement problems arise not to mention problems in forming social relationships. Intensive rehabilitation after the treatment therapy aids in minimizing these social disadvantages of the disorder. Family support in nurturing their emotional and psychosocial needs enhance better results during this recovery period. Provison of information regarding schiophrenia to the patients’ families will also aid in the understanding of the disorder. Explanantion of the course and outcome of the disease process to their family members will also enable them to be aware of what to expect. Good communication betweeen patients and their care givers also play an important role to obtain positive results during the recovery stage. Together with other mental diseases like bipolar disorder, schizophrenia is a difficult and complicated illness to diagnose (Uyttebrouck, 2009). Since it is a tricky disease to diagnose, it ends up in treatment delays causing disappointments and a great deal of discouragements to patients and their families. Results from recent researches pointed out using brain MRIs in detecting mental illnesses like schizophrenia. This study very well help in speeding up diagnosis once patient’s come with symptoms of schizophrenia. This brain imaging technology if proven with high accuracy could offer a great and powerful measures for diagnosing these mental disorders. The use of functional MRIs (magnetic resonance imaging) were able to recognize with 93% precision patients with schizophrenia from those healthy control group. Presently, the fundamental and underlying cause of schizophrenia is not completely understood, making its diagnosis entirely based on its symptoms. With the use of MRI in establishing prompt and early diagnosis, efficient and successful treatment very well facilitates improvement on the lives of patients with schizophrenia (Uyttebrouck, 2009). The movie showed that it took so long for the patient to be diagnosed with the disease. His visual and auditory hallucinations were so real that even people around him were never able to know and even complain that he was having these symptoms. It seemed like his symptoms did not have any effects on the people around him. He was able to function well with his life. Even during his wedding, one could never tell that the presence of his friend there was only a hallucination. It was already when he got married that his wife was getting worried with his actions. It was then the time when medical treatment was sought. Since it took several years before he sought for medical attention and resulted to the delay of its diagnosis, it made a big impact on the course of the mental disorder. Also, the patient himself was denying that those people he had been seeing were mere hallucinations. Even when his wife and other health care team members had already explained to him that they were unreal, it was very difficult for him to accept the truth. He was admitted to a mental facility and was administered with antipsychotic medications to relieve the symptoms. He was discharged from the mental facility with the condition that he will continue with the treatment regimen. Since the antipsychotic medications affected his intellectual capacity and abilities, he decided to cease taking these medications causing remissions and relapses. This part of the movie showed the importance of being strict in following the treatment regimen to obtain positive results. The establishment of the diagnosis and treatment was very realistic. However, the psychologists should have given priority to home visits and follow ups. One thing that was not shown in the movie was the availability of health care professionals visiting in the community. Nobody from the health care team seemed to check up on him while he was at home. It did not show any home care check ups and visits from social workers, psychiatrists. For me, health care professionals need to follow up closely those patients with mental disorders post discharge from mental facilities. The movie reflects the psychologists’ level of understanding corectly. It presented the importance of family’s support to the patient. His wife was with his side and was supportive to his treatments. The support of his wife created a positive outcome to the course of his mental disorder. Interpersonal and social issues were presented well. It showed very well what symptoms, manifestations and characteristics to expect from patients afflicted with this mental disorder. It also showed the hardships and sacrifices the wife had to go through while taking care of a husband with schizophrenia. References Frangou, S. & Byrne, P. (2000). How to manage the first episode of schizophrenia. British MedicalJ ournal (International Edition), 321:7260. p522. Uyttebrouck, O. (2009, February 18). MRIs detect mental illness: Findings may help speed diagnosis. Albuquerque Journa, Metro and New Mexico section Woodham, A. & Peters, D. (2004). Schizophrenia. In Encyclopedia of Natural Healing. Dorling Kindersley.

Bram Stoker Essays

Bram Stoker Essays Bram Stoker Essay Bram Stoker Essay Essay Topic: Alice in Wonderland One miserably wet summer, Coraline Jones moves into a flat in an old house, with her parents who are too busy with work to pay much attention to her. She discovers a mysterious locked door in the drawing room of the flat; when she gets her mother to open the door, it swings open to reveal nothing but a brick wall. But one day, when bored and left alone in the flat by her mother, Coraline tries the door again, it opens to reveal a corridor leading to a flat quite like her own, but not quite.She ventures further into the flat, where she comes across her mother cooking in the kitchen, except her skin is paper white, she is taller and thinner, her fingers too long and her fingernails curved, sharp and dark red. The woman turns round; her eyes are big black buttons. She is the other mother and she is cooking food that smells awfully tasty. Coraline soon discovers that her father and her other neighbours in this strange world also have buttons for eyes, oh and the cat that hangs round the building can now talk.Coraline decides that this other world is rather more interesting than her own, but when told that she could stay, as long as she exchanged her own eyes for buttons, she decides that she could never do that and returns back home through the tunnel. However when she gets home she discovers that her real parents have disappeared under mysterious circumstances. Coraline soon realises that she will have to go back through the tunnel to rescue them.Back in the other mother’s world, the other mother soon learns that Coraline is not prepared to love her and she is thrown into the hallway mirror, where she meets three ghost children, who are also held captive. One tells Coraline, as she falls asleep, to look through the stone given to her earlier by Miss Spink and Miss Forcible, two of Coraline’s neighbours. The next day Coraline uses the stone in a game of challenge with the other mother; everyone will be released if Coraline can find their lost souls.Co raline finds the souls but she still has to find her parents and persuade the other mother to reopen the door to the tunnel between the two houses. Coraline does this by tricking the other mother to open the door, Coraline then grabs the snow globe which she has realised contains her parents and with the souls of the three children in her pocket and followed by the cat, she escapes through the tunnel. However, something else comes through the tunnel as well, the other mother’s hand, which wants the key to the doorway back. Coraline manages to get rid of the hand by ricking it into falling into the old well in the back garden. ANALYSIS: What’s up with the title? Coraline is named after the lead character in the story, Coraline Jones. Its a pretty basic title. But its important to notice that the title is just Coralines name. Many times, a book that features the main characters name in the title also mentions a few other things: think Alice in Wonderland, Harry Potter an d the fill-in-the-blank, Harold and the Purple Crayon. The title Coraline emphasizes Coraline the character above the wacky adventures shes going to have.Inspiration comes in many ways. Fictional characters can affect a real person’s life. Coraline was brave, independent, and showed great creativeness in the book titled Coraline by Neil Gaiman. Throughout the entire story, Coraline displayed a great amount of courage. After moving into a new home, this curious little girl ventured through a door that was never meant to be opened. She met her other mother that had the desire to sow buttons into Coralines eyes. Coraline stood up for herself and said no, and that takes courage. Although Coraline was only about nine years old, she saved her parents.She re-entered the tunnel, after her other mother captured her real parents, without fear. Coraline defended herself from the other mother and slammed the door right in her face to escape. Like many kids these days, Coraline had to do several things alone or by herself. Coraline made her own dinner and her own decisions. When her parents were busy with work, Coraline often played by herself. She thought for herself and didnt allow the other mother control her thoughts and actions. Coraline was wise beyond her years. Although the other mother tried to cover up the bad with good, Coraline saw right through it.She outsmarted the other mother and tricked the other mother’s hand, that was after her soul seeing stone, to jump in the well. Coraline is an inspiring character who made me think about my life. I also do not wish to live in a perfect world. She reminded me to be bold when things get tough and that one should keep fighting. Coraline was an independent thinker. She saw the situation for what it truly was. Things arent always as they appear. Who is the narrator, can she or he read minds, and, more importantly, can we trust her or him?The narrative technique in Coraline is third person limited, which mean s that a narrator tells us the story, focusing mostly on one character. In this particular case, an adult narrator tells us Coralines story. This is a pretty common narrative technique for books that star children. Having an adult narrator tell us a childs story can give us a little more depth; sometimes adults can see the big picture a little more than kids. Also, its usually just easier for an adult to write from an adults point of view! Gaimans use of third person narration also gives us an important outsider perspective on Coraline.Coraline is often the only character on the page; she doesnt get to have a ton of conversations with other people (except the cat, of course). Having the story narrated in the third person gives us that outsider perspective wed otherwise be missing, without losing insight into Coralines inner thoughts. The other mother created a world that she thought Coraline would want. So what does the other world tell us about Coraline and what she wishes for? Cor alines parents are really busy and tend to ignore her; shes often left alone to entertain herself and even take care of herself. That doesnt sound like the best family set-up.But then Coraline discovers an alternate set of parents who pay her tons of attention and cook her delicious food. Sounds like a good trade, right? Well, Coraline quickly figures out that its a rotten deal. Her own parents might have their flaws, but theyre still her parents. And Coraline loves them enough to fight hard to get them back from the cruel other mother. Coraline teaches us that, when it comes down to it, family is irreplaceable. What do you think was the bravest thing Coraline did in the novel? Upon her return to her apartment, Coraline finds her real parents are missing.They do not return the next day, and the black cat wakes her and takes her to a mirror in her hallway, through which she can see her trapped parents. They signal to her by writing Help Us on the glass, from which Coraline deduces th e Other Mother has kidnapped them. Though frightened of returning, Coraline goes back to the Other World to confront the Other Mother and rescue her parents. What is the writing style of the novel? This story includes a lot of Coralines thoughts, and the narrator chimes in with some reflections, too. As a result, the style can get a little poetic sometimes. Someone had once told her that if you look up at the sky from the bottom of a mine shaft, even in the brightest daylight, you see a night sky and stars. Coraline wondered if the hand could see stars from where it was. (13. 71)† Their thoughts are sometimes more poetic than the words they actually get to say aloud. By recording Coralines thoughts, then, Gaiman affects the style of his whole book. What’s the tone of the story? Even though theres a third person narrator, we get most of the story from Coralines point of view, hearing her thoughts and her feelings.This means that Coraline herself pretty much determines th e tone of the novel. All the tones we get come largely from Coralines own emotions: when shes scared, or relieved, or bored, or excited, we hear it. Why buttons? The black button eyes of the other mother are probably the most iconic or well-known image to come out of Coraline. â€Å"They were looking at her with their black button eyes. Or at least she thought they were looking at her. She couldnt be sure. (4. 128)† These eyes are definitely creepy. The black button eyes let us know that were in the other world and highlight how disturbing it is.Buttons are a seemingly harmless object, but in the other world, they become sinister and threatening. In fact, turning nice things into threatening things seems to be one of the main functions of the other world and the beldam herself. These buttons essentially act like masks. Coraline cant tell if her other parents are watching her and she cant get any clues through their eyes as to what theyre thinking. Because we see so much throu gh peoples eyes, these buttons hide the humanness of the people wearing them (if theyre even human at all), preventing us from really knowing a person.For this reason, Coralines other mother could never really be known, or loved, by the children she kidnaps. What’s the meaning of the key? The key into the other world becomes a hot commodity, or item, in the story. Theres only one key to the door between the other world and our world. And the other mother and Coraline both want to control that key. The appearance of the key can help us understand what it represents. Compared to the other keys, its the oldest, biggest, blackest, rustiest key (1. 51). Its different from all the other keys, just like the other world is different from the real world.In this way, the key seems to represent the other world: old and ugly. Usually when we think of keys, we think of unlocking something or opening something up. Coraline certainly does this when she finds the other world. But if keys can unlock, they can also lock you in. Eek! Thats more what Coraline is about – the fear of being trapped somewhere you dont want to be. So how do we eliminate the fear of being trapped? Well, trap the key itself! And thats exactly what Coraline does. What is the author telling us about our identity?When youre totally on your own – like Coraline is – you need to have a super strong sense of self to get you through things. In Coraline, our heroine doesnt have friends or family to rely on, so she learns this lesson pretty quickly. She doesnt need other people to know her in order to know herself: even if everyone forgets her name, it doesnt mean she isnt Coraline. And of course, other peoples identities become an issue for Coraline, too. Who is the other mother? What is the other mothers identity in relation to Coralines real mothers identity? And the three ghost children?Can they have identities if they dont even have names? Coraline is struggling with all of these questions, all the while trying to save the day. Impressive. What up with the ending? Coraline overcomes great odds, defeats the evil other mother, saves her parents, and rescues the trapped souls of three children. Pretty impressive, dont you think? So why doesnt this book end with everyone throwing Coraline a parade to celebrate her awesomeness? Well, Coraline may have triumphed against evil, but she did it alone. And now she has to enjoy her victory alone, too.No one else even knows what happened to Coraline: her parents dont remember their time trapped by the other mother and the neighbors didnt notice anyone was missing. But even if no one else is paying attention, Coraline is still content. She has learned a lot during the story, and shes much more confident by the end of it, so why does it matter if anyone else knows? Shes happy to just drift off into a happy dream, remembering the friends she met in the other world. Coraline is mainly about Coraline herself; so it only makes sense that the end focuses on, well, Coraline.Is it any good? Author Neil Gaiman is well known in the world of adult literature, but this is his first book for children. Its a strange, surrealistic tale, fun for kids who like their stories creepy. The black-and-white illustrations by Dave McKean are correspondingly sinister. Not everything will make sense to young readers, nor will they find the emotional heart that marks childrens classics but they will find Coraline to be a brave character who uses her smarts to not only save herself, but also others the Other Mother trapped. Plus, the plot rolls long fairly unpredictably and with a few good scares. Not awe-inspiring, but entertaining enough. Coraline by Neil Gaiman is a weird and delightfully scary fairy tale / ghost story. I call it delightfully scary because while it grips the readers attention with creepy happenings that may cause a case of the shivers, it is not the kind of scary book that lead to nightmares of the it could happen to me kind. I recommend Coraline for 8- to 12-year-olds. Although the main character is a girl, this tale will appeal to both boys and girls who enjoy weird and scary (but not too scary) tales.Because of all of the dramatic happenings, Coraline is also a good read-aloud for 8- to 12-year-olds. Why shoud I care to read? Have you ever been afraid of anything? Not like monsters-in-the-closet afraid, but really, truly how-am-I-going-to-get-through this afraid? Were thinking about that time you were in a play and had to get up on stage in front of your whole school and recite your lines. Or the first time you went to camp and had to say goodbye to your parents. Or even the time you were home alone during a thunderstorm and you had to stay calm for your little brother.One of these things has happened to all of us – and how did we get through it? We did it anyway. If we hadnt gotten on stage, gone to camp, or comforted our brother, we would have never gotten over our fears. We wouldnt have been brave. Coraline is a story of bravery, and according to Coraline herself, being brave is when youre scared but you still do it anyway (5. 80). Coralines bravery might be the epic, fairy tale kind: she does fight monsters, after all. But Coraline teaches us that bravery comes in all forms.Bravery can be going back to get your glasses near a wasps nest. It can even be just going to school. If youre scared and you do it anyway, youre brave. Coraline reminds us that we dont need to ride a BMX over a box jump or poke a raccoon with a stick to be brave. Bravery can be a much more everyday occurrence. No matter what it is, if we do it, well gain confidence and feel better about ourselves after – just like Coraline did. Thats not to say its easy (and neither was battling the other mother), but thats what makes it worth it.

Qualifier Words in English

Qualifier Words in English In English grammar, a  qualifier is a word or phrase  (such as very) that precedes an adjective or adverb, increasing or decreasing the quality signified by the word it modifies.   Here are some of the most common qualifiers in English (though a number of these words have other functions as well): very, quite, rather, somewhat, more, most, less, least, too, so, just, enough, indeed, still, almost, fairly, really, pretty, even, a bit, a little, a (whole) lot, a good deal, a great deal, kind of, sort of. Compare their usage with  intensifiers, which amplify what they modify and are adjectives or adverbs, and  degree adverbs, which can modify verbs and other modifiers. Some qualifiers have more limited usage contexts than others. In the third edition of English Grammar: A University Course, Angela Downing illustrates, using fairly:   Fairly  as a modifier indicates an almost large or reasonable degree of a quality (fairly accurate, fairly well-off). It can be used more easily with favourable and neutral adjectives than with strongly  unfavourable  ones, as with  fairly honest, fairly intelligent, fairly reasonable, but not  ?fairly dishonest, ?fairly foolish, ?fairly [sic] unreasonable: He seems to have a  fairly  good idea  of what he wants to do. (Routledge, 2014) Writing Advice An over-reliance on qualifiers is a sign of amateurish writing. To improve your writing, go through your text and find all the qualifiers. Take them out wherever you can. As needed, revise the sentences or sections relying heavily  on them to give more detail  and more specifics. Use better verbs in the sentences or description to show- rather than tell- whats going on. Then you wont even need the qualifiers, because the imagery or the argument will be painted much more thoroughly for the reader. Qualifiers have their place, Mignon Fogarty advises, but make sure theyre not just taking up space (Grammar Girl Presents the Ultimate Writing Guide for Students, 2011).   The famous writing book by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White has more strict advice:   Avoid the use of  qualifiers.  Rather, very, little, pretty- these are the leeches that infest the pond of prose, sucking the blood of words. The constant use of the adjective  little  (except to indicate size) is particularly debilitating; we should all try to do a little better, we should all be very watchful of this rule, for it is a rather important one, and we are pretty sure to violate it now and then. (The Elements of Style, 3rd ed. Macmillan, 1979) Qualifiers vs. Adverbs Qualifiers seem to work like adverbs- and theyll even be in the dictionary listed as such- but they differ slightly from your basic adverb.  Thomas P. Klammer and Muriel R. Schulz explained:   Traditional grammarians usually classified qualifiers as adverbs of degree, and at first glance, judging on the basis of meaning and function, this seems reasonable. Degree adverbs- like  completely, absolutely, extremely,  and  excessively- can fit into the same position as the prototype, and they have similar meanings.However, qualifiers are not true adverbs; they fail to fulfill several of the criteria for adverbs....First, qualifiers do not modify verbs....Second, with one or two exceptions, like  really  and  fairly, qualifiers do not have adverb derivational  suffixes. Third, qualifiers cannot be made  comparative  or  superlative....And fourth, qualifiers do not  intensify. (Analyzing English Grammar. Allyn and Bacon, 1992)

Statement of purpose for geophysics masters Personal

Of purpose for geophysics masters - Personal Statement Example In reference to this, I made a decision to pursue Geological Sciences Option II, which is more involved in seismic study of the deep Earth. As of now, I can confidently articulate that my skills are ready for the job market. Moreover, the industrial attachment I attended for six months enabled me to put the theories I learnt in class into practice. The University of Texas has prepared me for the future in character and knowledge, and now I am a graduate with a first class honors degree. Pertaining to this, I am constantly motivated to increase my knowledge so that I can give more solid contributions towards making the world a better place to live through this field. For this undoubted reason, my persona compels me to make an application for a Masters Degree in Geophysics in your reputable institution in the coming days. I am fully informed of the institution’s reputation, and I have no misgivings that you will offer me a platform for this

Personal Statement - Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Personal Statement - - Essay Example Healthcare professionalism is a very noble career. This clinical health practice docket, nonetheless, is incomplete without sports medicine/physical or occupational therapy. Healthy life and physical fitness within the society is what motivates me to undertake this course at the university level. Working with the entire societies with an aim of keeping them physically fit motivates me a lot as a sports person. Physical therapy, as an occupation, will give me a better chance as a medical practitioner to share my overall experiences as a sports person with individual patients. As a sports person, I think I need to be more enlightened clinically. This would be significant especially in the field track events emergencies. The Historical Black College would play a crucial role in my life by putting into practical the theoretical clinical practices, which affect individual sportspersons out in the field. Secondly, based on merit beginning with the A-level qualifications, I believe I am qualified to undertake this health course in your noble college. My skills and talents are not classroom oriented. Outside classroom, I have undertaken various sporting activities as well as unifying my colleagues from different colors. I am a liberal thinker thus totally against racism. Through my liberal thinking capability, I have always been involved in Cottonwood Christian Center Church activities, Youth Media Teams as well as High school clubs such as the African Decent club (HS). Based on my self-assessment, I remarkably became the first black girls to make the white cheer team. I believe that if these innate self-attributes are carried to the field of clinical health practices, then a more elaborate and patient-oriented healthcare sector would be achieved. Concisely, sports health to some degree need individuals who have experience and understanding to some sporting activities of which I have. For example, I have an advanced experience in sporting activities as a