Video game controversy Essay Example for Free

Video game controversy Essay â€Å"In 2008, 298. 2 million video games were sold in the US, totaling $11. 7 billion in revenue. Six of the top ten best-selling video games included violence, with four of the games carrying a Mature rating recommended for persons aged 17 and older. † However, violent video games are becoming a serious issue due to increases in bullying, violence toward women and school shootings. Although, many individuals will claim that video games are just an easy accessibility to express oneself, there have been thousands of researches worldwide hoping to find the relations, threats, and even benefits transferred from violent video games to the gamers. In fact, some of the â€Å"most focused on† studies force to claim that playing violent video games does present a threat to a user’s psychological health which leads the gamer to aggressive(dangerous) behavior, increases social isolation, and should be prevented from purchase by minors. â€Å"Physical aggression† is defined as behavior intended to harm another person physically. Organizations such as the Journal of the American academy of Pediatrics, the American Psychiatric Association, and the American Psychological Association have actually been focusing on video games and the ties they have with physical aggression. The American Psychological Association concludes that adolescents who play video games may become increasingly aggressive over time(Yee 454). Several other studies have come to identify a cause/effect relationship between dangerous aggression and violent video games. Obviously, many gamers are not displaying much physical aggression personally while they are blowing the brains out of the â€Å"bad guys. † However, as many researchers proclaim, â€Å"Exposing children and adolescents to violent visual media increases the likelihood that they will engage in physical aggression against another person†(Anderson 445). With that stated, as the gamer may not be exploiting physical aggression at the time playing the violent video game, that individual has a high risk of absorbing similar aggressive characteristics especially after playing the game repeatedly. Along with an expected increase of physical aggression, many researchers believe that, â€Å"Media violence also produces an emotional desensitization to aggression and violence†(446). A gamer that is newly introduced to the genre of violent video games may become less sensitive or emotionally unresponsive toward violence as exposure to such genre increases and repeated game play occurs. According to James Gee, â€Å"Game players are active problem solvers who do not see mistakes as errors, but as opportunities for improvement. Players search for newer, better solutions to problems and challenges†(451). Besides all of the negative opinions on violent video games and straight from the text, â€Å"A recent Texas AM International study shows that violent games could actually reduce violent tendencies and could be used as a therapy tool for teens and young adults† (Greenberg 456-7). The majority of teens are students, occasionally have emotional stress, or just plainly need to relieve stress and to many the best way to do so is by pulling out the new Grand Theft Auto. Violence portrayed in video games—similar to reality or not—is thought of to â€Å"help children with difficult feelings such as powerlessness and fear of real violence†(Greenberg 456). Similarly, with no direct relationship, cigarette smoking is not a sufficient cause of lung cancer; although it is a cause that is closely related. Physical aggression may be increased with the direct use of violent video games, just as the risk of being diagnosed with lung cancer increases for the individual who smokes a cigarette. However, the list of risk factors in order to develop lung cancer stretches far beyond than just the cigarette; and even the one that does smoke may be in healthy shape for the majority of a lifetime. With that stated, video games are just one of many possible risk factors of physical aggression and may not exactly be supported with sufficient evidence to claim high levels of physical aggression resulted from violent video games. According to Anderson, â€Å"There are many causal risk factors involved in the development of a person who frequently behaves in an aggressive or violent manner. There are biological factors, family factors, neighborhood factors, and so on†(446). But regardless of how many other risk factors are present in a youth’s life, playing a lot of violent games is likely to increase the frequency and the aggression, both in the short term and over time as the youth grows up(Anderson 446). No matter if the physical aggression in a gamer of the violent genre is extreme or does not seem to pose a serious threat, the physical aggression does exist and can risk increasing as the violent games are being played more. Repeated consumption of violent video games â€Å"create more positive attitudes, beliefs, and expectations regarding aggressive solutions to interpersonal problems†(446). Youth are becoming to conclude that physical aggression is acceptable, and rather normal. Well over 100 experienced researchers, scientists, and scholars worldwide follow a statement which says: â€Å"Overall, the research data conclude that exposure to violent video games causes an increase in the likelihood of aggressive behavior. The effects are both immediate and long term. Violent video games have also been found to increase aggressive thinking, aggressive feelings, physiological desensitization to violence, and to decrease pro-social behavior. † Researchers and critics have expressed concerns about appropriate socialization and even addiction of young people who spend too much time alone, staring at a screen. Playing violent video games does present a threat to a user’s psychological health in which it increases social isolation. Before video games became such entertainment, more physical activity and social interactions with other individuals was a priority in search for easy entertainment. According to the website, Buzzle, referring to socialization and video games, â€Å"Social isolation can be an immediate consequence of continuous and ceaseless gaming. People, especially children, tend to spend lesser time with their friends and others because they want to get back home and continue playing. This makes them aloof from others and so in the long-run lack abilities of social communication and develop a kind of anthropophobiafear of human company†(Web). Children and teens may also come across confusion about reality and fiction. Being addicted anything, including violent video games, can place a burden on one’s social life. The ability for frequent playing gamers to witness certain realities of the world become limited and the amount of individuals the gamer interacts with eventually decreases; which leads to social isolation. Almost 60 percent of frequent gamers play with friends. Thirty-three perscent play with siblings and 25 percent play with spouses or parents. Even games designed for single players are often played socially(Jenkins 451). With percentages fairly medium, social isolation does not look as if it is as big a factor as expected. Although, gamers are not always socially interacting, social bonding makes up a major part of the controlled play. Many games, such as Call of Duty, allow access to a headset which allows individuals to socially interact with one another while playing the game. Also, about 40% of all user time on Facebook is spent playing social games, where Facebook is designed to socially interact with friends and family on a social networking site. According to Jane McGonigal, â€Å"Games make it easy to build stronger social bonds with our friends and family. Studies show that we like and trust someone better after we play a game with them—even if they beat us†(465). Even though Facebook is considered a social networking site, playing social games on the site does not exactly relate to the correct form of social interaction that is necessary to be correct. Also, just because you can talk through headset and socially interact; you are not exactly familiar with the individual speaking to you. In result, certain fears may lead to transformation in social awkwardness due to decrease of face to face contact in replace with a headset and other gamers sitting in front of their screen. Games may make it easy to build stronger social bonds, however, adding an intense amount of violence can result in different mood changes in gamers due to personal opinions on acts performed by other gamers. With a change in social behavior; friendships, family members, peers and other individuals may diagnose a problem with the gamer and consider violent video games to be a direct result of social isolation. Is it considered constitutional if an American citizen gets limited rights under the First Amendment? Playing violent video games does present a threat to a user’s psychological health and should be prevented from purchase by minors. However, Supreme Court judicial and other government officials have to decide if prohibition of violent video games to minors is interfering with the individual’s right to the First Amendment—which basically allows American citizens to have freedom of specific categories. The harmful effects on minors from playing violent video games are documented and seriously contested(Yee 454). States such as California are already attempting to make laws in which sell of violent video games to minors is prohibited just to protect children from the harmful effects of excessively violent video games. Prohibiting the sale of violent video games to minors will assist in preventing unnecessary risk factors resulted from video games. As teens short of the required age cannot watch ‘R-rated’ movies, they should not be granted the ability to control a version of realism that is similar to â€Å"real-life† on a screen in front of your face. Within the First Amendment rights are rights of speech, press, and political freedom. â€Å"To strip First Amendment free speech protection from video games that ‘lack serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for minors,†(Greenberg 455) is just absurd and objecting against one’s constitutional rights. Besides preventing the sale of violent video games to minors just going against the First Amendment, some stores may stop carrying Mature-rated games. Game publishers might be afraid to finance them. Developers would not know how to avoid triggering censorship because even the creator of such laws do not seem to know(456). Government bureaucrats are not fully equipped to â€Å"divine the artistic value that a video game has for a 17-year old. † Excitingly, many researchers believe that parents should gain more authority in the types of games or media the child absorbs or chooses to interact with. Instead of the gaming industry being responsible for the outcomes of critic reviews, and research studies; the children’s parents should take much more responsibility on anything absorbed, taught, or knowledge received by child. The people allowed to limit minor’s free speech rights are his parents or guardian(s)(456). As stated by Yee, â€Å"I am hopeful that a majority of justices will agree that parents—not retailers or game makers—should determine which games are appropriate for kids†(454). As Greenberg proclaims at the end of his passage, â€Å"Even when video games contain violence, and even when the players are minors whose parents let them play games with violence, picking up that game controller is a form of expression, and it should be free†(457). â€Å"It makes no sense to bar children from buying a picture of a naked woman but to allow them to buy video games that portray gratuitous torture†(Yee 454). There are several laws or rules that prevent us from reaching desired expectations due to physical reactions, age, and maturity level, to say the least. If a minor is prohibited from the sale of pornography due to social morals and personal ineligibilities, then one should receive tougher access to the available consumption of violent video games. The prevention to contribute those games to minors is a hopeful act to will not only ensure that parents make such decisions, but will help protect our children in the years to come. Yee claims, â€Å"That since the government can ‘prohibit the sale of alcohol, tobacco, firearms, driver’s licenses and pornography to minors’ then ‘that same reasoning applies in the foundation and enactment’ of his law restricting video games. There is a certain age until finally eligible to legally purchase weapons, alcoholic beverages, tobacco, sexual accessories, tattoos, and the list goes on. The more progressed and difficult the violent video games are becoming are being critiqued extremely precise, and actually portraying very similar to realistic visuals. With prevention of sales to minors, unnecessary confusion between psychological health in minors and violent video games will be limited and nearly eliminated; leaving open window of individuals that gain access to violent video games with prohibition to sell to minors. Do violent video games present a threat to the gamers’ psychological health? Although several studies have left many conclusions unanswered; hundreds of researchers, scientists and scholars have worked together and individually to allow the correct information behind the true relationship of violent video games and the gamers’ psychological health. Playing violent video games does present a threat to user’s psychological health in which it leads to aggressive behavior, increases social isolation, and should be prevented from purchase by minors. Works Cited Anderson, Craig A. â€Å"Violent Video Games and Other Media Violence. † Writing Arguments: a rhetoric with readings. Ed. Lauren A. Finn. New Jersey: Saddle River, 2012. 445-6. Print. D’Silva, Roy. â€Å"Negative Effects of Video Games. † Buzzle. 10 Oct 2012. Web. 2 Mar 2013. Greenberg, Daniel. â€Å"Why the Supreme Court Should Rule that Violent Video Games are Free Speech. † Writing Arguments: a rhetoric with readings. Ed. Lauren A. Finn. New Jersey: Saddle River, 2012. 454-7. Print. Jenkins, Henry. â€Å"Reality Bytes: Eight Myths about video Games Debunked. † Writing Arguments: a rhetoric with readings. Ed. Lauren A. Finn. New Jersey: Saddle River, 2012. 449-452. Print. McGonigal, Jane. â€Å"Be a Gamer, Save the World. † Writing Arguments. : a rhetoric with readings. Ed. Lauren A. Finn. New Jersey: Saddle River, 2012. 464-6. Print. ProCon. org. Do violent video games contribute to youth violence? ProCon. org. 29 Mar 2011. Web. 2 Mar 2013. Yee, Leland Y. â€Å"Parents Should be able to Control What Kids Watch. † Writing Arguments: a rhetoric with readings. Ed. Lauren A. Finn. New Jersey: Saddle River, 2012. 453-4. Print.

Epidemiolgy of Chikungunya Fever in Srikakulam District

Epidemiolgy of Chikungunya Fever in Srikakulam District Abstract Background: Chikungunya virus is no stranger to the Indian sub-continent. Since its first isolation in Calcutta, in 1963, the last outbreak of chikungunya virus infection occurred in India in 1971. Subsequently, there has been no active or passive surveillance carried out in the country and seemed that the virus has disappeared till the large outbreaks of fever occurred in several parts of Southern India. We report a prospective analysis of cases of chikungunya fever referred from various primary health centers of rural, tribal and semiurban areas of Srikakulam district, Andhra Pradesh. Aims of study: To analyse the burden of Chikungunya fever in the Srikakulam district of Andhra Pradesh Material and Methods: A prospective descriptive study was under taken between January-2013 to December-2014 by testing clinically suspected chikungunya fever patients attending tertiary care centre in the Srikakulam district, Andhra Pradesh. The sera collected from suspected patients were analyzed for CHIK specific IgM antibody by IgM antibody capture enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using NIVCHIK kit. The data was analyzed. Results:-During the study period the total number of samples screened with clinical suspicion of chikungunya fever was 127, out of which 23(18.11%) were positive for IgM antibodies. The number of seropositive cases referred from rural area was 3 in number and from tribal areas 20.The seasonal distribution of cases was variable. Conclusion: Chikungunya fever is self limiting disease. Efforts have to be made through community awareness and early institution of supportive therapy. Vector control measures should be in full swing. Key words: Chikungunya fever, IgM positivity, Srikakulam district EPIDEMIOLGY OF CHIKUNGUNYA FEVER IN SRIKAKULAM DISTRICT Introduction Chikungunya (that which bends up) is an infection caused by the chikungunya virus (arbo virus). It features the sudden onset of fever usually lasting two to seven days, and joint pains typically lasting weeks or months but sometimes years.[1] The mortality rate is a little less than 1 in 1000, with the elderly most likely to die.[2] The arbo virus is passed to humans by two species of mosquito of the genus Aedes: A.albopictus and A.aegypti. Animal reservoirs of the virus include monkeys, birds, cattle, and rodents. This is in contrast to dengue, for which only primates are hosts. [3] The best means of prevention is overall mosquito control and the avoidance of bites by mosquitoes in countries where the disease is common. [4] No specific treatment is known, but medications can be used to reduce symptoms. Rest and fluids may also be useful. Material and Methods: A prospective descriptive study was under taken between January-2013 to December-2014 by testing clinically suspected primary Chikungunya patients attending tertiary care centre in the Srikakulam District, Andhra.Pradesh.This centre receives samples from semiurban, rural and tribal areas from Srikakulam district. Blood samples were collected from patients with clinically suspected Chikungunya fever attending the Pediatric and Medicine clinics. The patents were diagnosed as having Chikungunya fever based on standard criteria; presentation with febrile illness of 2 to 7 days duration with skin rash and features like joint pains typically lasting weeks or months but sometimes years. Mixed infection with dengue and chikungunya fever and secondary infection were excluded from the study. The exact date of sampling was not available for most of the patents .Approximately 3 ml of blood was collected, serum was separated. The sera collected from suspected patients were analyzed for CHIK specific IgM antibody by IgM antibody capture enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) using NIVCHIK kit. The data was analyzed. Results During the study period (2013 and 2014), the total number of samples screened was 127 of which 23 (18.11%) were positive for IgM antibodies (Table 12). There was increase in the percentage positivity in the year 2014(28.78%) when compared to 2013(6.55%) with (P value of .005). Of the 23 reactive cases, 1(4.34%) was positive in a child of four years and 22 (95.65%) were adults. The IgM positivity was 12 (52.17%) in males and 11 (47.82%) in females. The distribution of seropositive cases in adults was uniform in the age group ranging from 29 years to 62 years. (Table 34). The observed chikungunya IgM seropositivity month wise is illustrated for the year 2013 and 2014.The percentage of IgM positivity recorded was found to be variable, high during the months of September in 2013 and May in 2014. (Table 12).The number of seropositive cases referred from tribal area was more 18(78.26%). Discussion The word chikungunya is thought to derive from a description in the Makonde language, meaning that which bends up, of the contorted posture of people affected with the severe joint pain and arthritic symptoms associated with this disease. The disease was first described by Marion Robinson and W.H.R. Lumsden in 1955, following an outbreak in 1952 on the Makonde Plateau, along the border between Mozambique and Tanganyika (the mainland part of modern day Tanzania).According to the initial 1955 report about the epidemiology of the disease, the term chikungunya is derived from the Makonde root verb kungunyala, meaning to dry up or become contorted. The first recorded outbreak of this disease may have been in 1779. This is in agreement with the molecular genetics evidence that suggests it evolved around the year 1700. [5] In India first outbreak of Chikungunya was documented in Kolkata during 1963 and after that 4 to 5 outbreaks had occurred. [6] The last outbreak was reported in 1971 and after that no such outbreak occurred. [7]It was assumed that virus had vanished from this region. Surprisingly since December 2005, more than 1,80,000 cases of Chikungunya was detected in India which clearly indicates re-emergence of Chikungunya in India.[8] Since then Chikungunya become a major public health problem in India. An estimate of prevalence of infection due to Chikungunya from several surveys conducted during an outbreak gives us an idea of burden of problem in a specific region which seems crucial for initiating any intervention strategy.[9] It is evident from prior survey that the main reason for this outbreak is lack of herd immunity, in-appropriate vector control strategy, emergence of rapid mutation of the virus.[7.9] Another issue with such outbreak is non-availability of proper laboratory diagnosis .[6,7] The reasons for outbreak for Chikungunya virus is unclear and yet to be explored Andhra Pradesh (AP) was the first state to report this disease in December 2005, and one of the worst affected (over 80,000 suspected cases). Several districts of Karnataka state such as Gulbarga, Tumkur, Bidar, Raichur, Bellary, Chitradurga, Davanagere, Kolar and Bijapur districts have also recorded large number of chikungunya virus related fever cases. Over, 2000 cases of chikungunya fever have also been reported from Malegaon town in Nasik district, Maharashtra state, India between February-March 2006. During the same period, 4904 cases of fever associated with myalgia and headache have been reported from Orissa state as well. According to the National Institute of Virology, Pune, out of 362 samples collected from different places in AP such as Kadapa, Secunderabad, Chittoor, Anantapur, Nalgonda and Prakasam, Kurnool and Guntur districts, 139 were found positive for chikungunya.[10] Laboratory diagnosis of Chikungunya poses a great threat as most commonly practiced test like ELISA for detection of IgM antibodies is not standardized and interpretation of test results should be done with caution. Diagnosis is usually done based on triad of clinical symptoms like sudden onset of fever, skin rash and arthalgia. [11] As Chikungunya is self-limiting disease and treatment is mainly supportive. The best strategy for control of such outbreak is raising awareness of the community through mass education by public health officials. Vector control measures like spraying insecticides for example temephos, fenthion, malathion and DDT, clearing stored water and personal protective measures is also a key element in control of such outbreak.Research has shown that most important reservoir of vector of Chikungunya is in stored water in plastic or metal container and also available at construction sites. During this present survey community received education regarding safe water storage practices and personal hygiene which seems important issues in control of such outbreak. [12] In the present study 127 cases presented with clinical features of chikungunya fever out which IgM positive cases were 23(18.11%).The ratio of IgM positive dengue fever to chikungunya fever was 2.2:1 in 2013 and 1:3.3 in 2014.Maximum number of cases presented beyond 28 years of age with only one case in a four year old boy with male preponderance. Cases recorded were more from tribal area (78.26%). Conclusion: Seasonal transmission of chikungunya fever is highly variable and more cases are recorded from the tribal area in the present study. Intensive efforts have to be made through community awareness and vector control measures should be in full swing throughout the year. Education regarding safe water storage practices is very much essential. References Powers AM, Logue CH (September 2007). Changing patterns of chikungunya virus: re-emergence of azoonotic arbovirus. J. Gen. Virol. 88 (Pt 9): 2363–77 Mavalankar D, Shastri P, Bandyopadhyay T, Parmar J, Ramani KV (2008). Increased Mortality Rate Associated with Chikungunya Epidemic, Ahmedabad, India. Emerging Infectious Diseases 14 (3): 412–5. Lahariya C, Pradhan SK (December 2006). Emergence of chikungunya virus in Indian subcontinent after 32 years: A review (PDF). J Vector Borne Dis 43 (4): 151–60 Caglioti C, Lalle E, Castilletti C, Carletti F, Capobianchi MR, Bordi L (Jul 2013). Chikungunya virus infection: an overview.. The new microbiologica 36 (3): 211–27 Cherian SS, Walimbe AM, Jadhav SM, Gandhe SS, Hundekar SL, Mishra AC, Arankalle VA (January 2009). Evolutionary rates and timescale comparison of Chikungunya viruses inferred from the whole genome/E1 gene with special reference to the 2005-07 outbreak in the Indian subcontinent. Infect. Genet. Evol. 9 (1): 16–23. Inamadar AC, Palit A, Sampagavi VV, Raghunath S, Deshmukh NS. Cutaneous manifestations of chikungunya fever: observations made during a recent outbreak in south India. Int J Dermatol 2008;47:154-9. Ravi V. Re-emergence of chikungunya virus in India. Indian J Med Microbiol 2006; 24:83-4. Chhabra M, Mittal V, Bhattacharya D, Rana U, Lal S. Chikungunya fever: a re-emerging viral infection. Indian J Med Microbiol 2008;26:5-12 Kalantri SP, Joshi R, Riley LW. Chikungunya epidemic: an Indian perspective. Natl Med J India 2006;19:315-22 Chikungunya and Dengue in the south west Indian Ocean. Epidemic and Pandemic Alert and Response (EPR).2006. Mohan A, Kiran DH, Manohar IC, Kumar DP. Epidemiology, clinical manifestations, and diagnosis of Chikungunya fever: lessons learned from the re-emerging epidemic. Indian J Dermatol 2010;55:54-63. Tikar SN, Mendki MJ, Chandel K, Parashar BD, Prakash S. Susceptibility of immature stages of Aedes (Stegomyia) aegypti; vector of dengue and chikungunya to insecticides from India. Parasitol Res 2008;102:907-13. TABLES TABLE 1: DISTRIBUTION OF CASES MONTH WISE IN THE YEAR-2013 TABLE-2: DISTRIBUTION OF CASES MONTH WISE IN THE YEAR-2014 TABLE 3: SEX WISE DISTRIBUTION OF IgM POSITIVE CASES TABLE 4: AGE WISE DISTRIBUTION OF IgM POSITIVE CASES TABLE 5: DISTRIBUTION OF IgM POSITIVE CASES AS PER HABITAT

Analyzing the Performance of Benedon Limited Company Essay -- Benedon

Analyzing the Performance of Benedon Limited Company I am writing a report to analyse the performance of Benedon Limited Company and to compare with the industry as a whole. The report analyses company and industry performance over the three years up to at end of 20X3. â€Å"It enables us to discover favourable or unfavourable trends that are developing gradually over time, as well as pointing up any numbers that have changed sharply in the space of time of just one year.† (Sytsma, S.) This report reviews the findings of the major changes and the awareness of weak performances. However, there are five principal types of ratios which are profitability ratios, liquidity ratios, activity ratios, solvency ratios and investment ratios. Under profitability, competitive pressure has risen in 20X3 compared to 20X1 and 20X2 as a result of Return on Capital Employed (ROCE) fell in year 20X3 from 19% to 14.7%, however, the ROCE in the year 20X3 is better than year 20X1 which had 13.2%. Gross margin (GM) could not be increased and falls substantially throughout the years as percentage of sales from 43.8% to 36.6% even though distribution and administration expenses have lowered every year. Therefore, it could not reflect the operating margin (OM) which has decreased in year 20X3. The average operating margin figures of Industrial Average (IA) and in year 20X2 were 16.0% but there is only 13% in year 20X3. In addition, ROCE in year 20X3 is much lower than the Industri...

Lord Of The Rings :: essays research papers

In The Hobbit the danger and the excitement reach a peak when the forces of good seem about to be overcome by the forces of evil. In The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien builds to two simultaneous peaks. One occurs at the point when Sauron's forces sweep down on the small army led by Aragorn at the gates of Mordor. The other occurs inside Mordor, as Frodo struggles with Gollum on the edge of the Crack of Doom, where the Ring is to be destroyed. Both the war and the quest reach their resolution in the same instant, when the Ring is destroyed and with it, Sauron's power. The fourth and final part of each story serves to wind things down. The hero returns home, looking forward to comfort. He finds instead that his home is threatened. But he has grown through his experiences and is able to regain what is his. Of course, there are many important differences between the two works. The Hobbit follows the story through Bilbo's eyes and tells of events in a chronological sequence. In other words, you hear about things as they happen, rather than jumping ahead to future events, or flashing back to something that happened in the past. When Tolkien departs from this chronological sequence in The Hobbit, he carefully guides you through the jump in time: "Now if you wish, like the dwarves, to hear news of Smaug, you must go back again to the evening when he smashed the door and flew off in a rage, two days before." The story line of The Lord of the Rings, on the other hand, is much more complicated. The Lord of the Rings is a trilogy, consisting of three volumes (Parts One to Three) divided into six sections (Books I through VI). The novel jumps back and forth in time, following the stories of several characters. The various story lines finally converge near the end when all the characters are reunited as Aragorn is crowned king of Gondor. Tolkien uses these shifts in viewpoint to good effect, often ending his scenes as cliff- hangers, slowly building the tension to its climax. But trying to follow the different story lines as he jumps back and forth from one to the other can be very difficult. Tolkien doesn't guide you through them as he did in The Hobbit. But he does give clues to help you put the pieces in

Immigration - Why I want to Live in Britain :: Papers

To immigrate from ones origin has become very popular in the last ten, twenty years. Immigration also is not a very easy thing to do; you have to have a lot of courage and the will to pursue it. If you are going to immigrate, I think that there is three important steps if you are going to immigrate namely: Why, How and Dealing with it. There are many reasons why people immigrate to another origin. A lot of people want to move closer to their relatives and a lot of parents who have children in other countries would immigrate because they do not want to grow old alone. The most of the worlds young population immigrate to countries like Britain to study at their outstanding universities like Oxford which is renowned all over the world. If you have completed your studies in a countyr like Britain, you will have an international degree which means that you can work any where in the world without having to do an exam again. I think that because you get an international degree it makes immigration even more popular under students. Middle aged people would mostly immigrate to develop their careers, for job experience and to find a place where they could practice their religion freely, without any violence or war. To move legitimately to another country is definitely not an easy thing to do as, the country to which you are moving to first has to approve of you coming to stay in their country. Countries want to protect job opportunities for their own people. Britain for example does not want to share their public funds with people who cannot contribute to the countries wealth. Britain also has a problem with asylum seekers because the country has to give them free medical etc. That is why to qualify for a work permit, you have to have very special qualifications. I think the most important thing if you immigrate is how you are going to deal with it.

Black Death Cause and Effect Essay

The Bubonic Plague or the Black Death has been in the history books since the medieval times. This deadly disease has claimed nearly 1. 5 million lives in Europe (Gottfried). The Black Death hit Europe in October of 1347 and quickly spread through most of Europe by the end of 1349 and continued on to Scandinavia and Russia in the 1350s. Not only did the plague effect the European population by killing one-third to two-thirds (Gottfried), it also hurt the social and economic structures of every European society. How it spread The Black Death actually first appeared in the Himalayan region around 1250 AD. There are several theories as to how the disease made its way to Europe. One theory is that since the plague is transmitted from a bite of a flea, that fleas that lived on marmots that were indigenous to the region were the original transporters (Clay,1). The first recorded appearance of the plague in Europe was at Messina, Sicily in October of 1347. It was believed to have arrived on trading ships that came from the Black Sea, past Constantinople and through the Mediterranean (Gottfried). This route was used to bring import items such as silks and porcelain, which were carried overland to the Black Sea from as far away as China (Gottfried). No one know the exact point of origin of the Black Death but what most scholars will agree with is that the disease reach Europe by rodents. The reason given was due to the climatic shifts in the area which caused a shortage of food. The disease ridden rodents’ migration put them in contact with human populations, thus, putting humans in contact with the disease carrying fleas. So many people were impacted because most people lived in very crammed and tight spaces. This also made waste disposal an issue, which caused people to just tip their waste out the window of their home, bringing the rats. Because everyone was so close, the fleas could easily infect hundreds of people in one day, so no one was safe (Gottfried). The people that did manage to escape death was due to the fact that their immune systems being able to withstand the plague (Gottfried). Types of Plague What killed so many wasn’t due to just one type of plague going around; The disease that devastated Europe was caused by three different types of plague: bubonic, pneumonic, and septicemic. All three are bacterial infections caused by Yersinia pestis (Gottfried). The most common form was the bubonic plague. Fleas that lived on the plague-infected rats spread the bubonic plague (Gottfried). After 6 days people who were infected with this strain would develop flu-like symptoms and blood pressure drops, heartbeats faster, and a sudden fever erupts, accompanied by chills, weakness, and headache. Next, a black pus filled bump surrounded by an inflamed red ring shows up at the place that was bitten (Gottfried). The lymph node would begin to swell with pus. When the enlarged lymph nodes would burst they would also emit dark colored blood and pus. This is how the name â€Å"Black Death† came to be coined (Vunguyen). A second type of plague was that of pneumonic. This plague could spread with a sneeze and could quickly jump from person to person and though it was less common than the bubonic form, but more deadly. This form was contracted through breathing in a mutated, airborne strain of the bacteria. The infected person would experience fluid building up in the lungs. This very unfortunate circumstance would, in turn, cause suffocation of the infected individual. This particular form of the bacteria would cause death within a short time span, usually two or three days (Boeckl). The third type of plague was speticemic plague. Though it was the least common out of the three, it was the deadliest. Septicemic plague was carried in the blood and was contracted only through blood-to-blood contact. The person infected with this type would develop a high fever but they would not develop many outward symptoms that they had contracted the plague. The individuals who were infected with this final strain of the bacterium were usually dead within 24 hours. Almost all who contracted either the pneumonic or septicemic plague died from the infection (Boeckl). Causes of the Black Death The causes of the Black Death – the flea, the rat, and the bacillus Yersinia pestis– have been labeled the â€Å"unholy trinity† (Boeckl). The flea is able to live in environmental conditions of about 74 ° Fahrenheit and 60% humidity (Ibid). Before the Black Death reached Europe, they were experiencing those same types of weather conditions. The rat flea, Xenopsylla cheopis and the human flea, Pulex irritans, are both capable of transmitting plague (Boeckl). Sometimes, an infected flea cannot ingest blood because Yersinia pestis obstructs its digestive tract. The blockage causes a flea to regurgitate into a bitten host rather than ingest the host’s blood, thereby infecting the host with plague (Boeckl). Unable to eat, the famished flea will bite with more frequency, accelerating the spread of plague. A flea can be carrying Yersinia pestis without it blocking the flea’s digestive tract, in which case the flea does not transmit plague when it bites a host. Also, Yersinia pestis can only enter a victim through a bite, as the bacilli cannot pass through intact skin (Gottfried). Social Changes The disease took a major toll on the population of Europe but as it wiped out communities it also caused changes in the social structure of European society. Europe was run by a feudal system (Vunguyen). As death took its toll, people started to question the way of life. When the Black Death swept over Europe and wiped out a third of its population, it also dismantled Feudalism. The feudal system was structured like a pyramid with the King being at the top and having complete control. The King owned everything; he had the power to decide who he would lease the land to. If he did allow a citizen to lease part of his land, before doing so they had to swear to an oath of loyalty (Vunguyen). People who did rent the King’s land were called Baron/Baronesses (Vunguyen). The leased land was called a manor, and the Barons were often called the ‘Lord of the Manor’ (Vunguyen). They were allowed to establish their own system of justice, mint their own money and set their own taxes. The Barons had to serve on the royal council, pay rent and provide the King with Knights for military service when he demanded it in return for the land they had been given (Vunguyen). When the King and his court travelled around the country, the Barons also had to provide lodging and food. The Barons kept as much of their land as they desired, then divided the rest among their Knights (Vunguyen). Knights were given land by the Baron in return for military service when demanded, and to protect the manor. The Knights kept as much of the land as they wished for their own personal use, and distributed the rest of it to serfs – although they weren’t as rich as the Barons, Knights were quite wealthy (). Serfs were given land by Knights in exchange for free labor, food and services whenever it was desired. They had no rights and weren’t allowed to leave the Manor. They had to ask their Lord’s permission before they could marry, and were often mistreated and poor (). The serfs or peasants were a key group in the population so when they started to die off, everything went downhill. The serfs served everyone on the pyramid and now Barons were willing to pay higher wages and offer extra benefits (Vunguyen). All their life they had lived off the serfs’ hard work, and were willing to pay them to stay on the manor to continue slaving for them. When the serfs died, the foundation on which feudalism relied upon was broken. The pyramid of power broke, and everything was a mess. Serfs left to find high wages due to the labor shortages. The land that had usually been the primary source of wealth was now worthless (Vunguyen). Entire estates were deserted as families fell to the plague and died, or fled in a vain attempt to escape its fury, were there for the taking (Vunguyen). As Europe evolved away from relying on land as the main source of prosperity, a rising middle-class claimed more and more wealth and prestige, as the once-noble began to quickly lose both (Vunguyen). The end of Feudalism had started and progressed each day as the plague claimed more lives. As the days went on people wondered, if they needed to change the way they lived or worshipped God. Many found that if they continued to live and worship as they had for centuries, the plague was not being pacified (Clay). This caused many people to abandon the way of life that they were accustomed to and chose a life that contrasted with social norms. A large group of people, desperate to point their fingers at someone, alleged and accused many different ‘groups’ which included ‘witches,’ lepers and Jews (Clay). In central Europe, the flagellants convincingly charged the Jews. On a tragic day in Strasbourg alone, over 8,000 Jews were killed for being the target of vain suspicions (). This quote shows just how the mind of Europeans changed: â€Å"Many were uncertain about the cause of this great mortality. In some places, they believed that the Jews had poisoned the worlds, and so they killed them. In some other areas, that it was a deformity of the poor, so they chased them out; in others, that it was the nobles, and so they [the nobles] hesitated to go out into the world. Finally, it reached the point where guards were posted in cities and towns, and they permitted no one to enter, unless he was well known. And if they found anyone with powders or unguents, they made him swallow them, fearing that these might be poisons (Clay, 2-3)†. Someone who survived the plague wrote â€Å"Everyone appeared to be rich because they had survived and regained value in life. Now, no one knows how to put their life back in order†(Clay, 3). No one knew how to put their life back together after the plague hit. When all the chaos died down and order was restored, the society was much different than what it once was. The disease did not discriminate; it killed people from all different social classes. The peasants now saw that everyone was made up of the same flesh, even though who once ruled over them. This epiphany led the serfs see the inequality of the system and they saw it as unfair and unjust (Clay, 3). â€Å"Because of all the affliction and misery there was much lawbreaking and because most of the law enforcers had also been hit by the plague there was not much that was done about it (Clay, 3). † This quote shows just how their mentality was changing. Lawbreakers could not be stopped especially by the lords and so once peasants realized all ties could be broken, they gained a new level of freedom (Clay, 4). Peasants and lord relationships were not the only thing that changed; individuals in the same social circle were forced to interact with one another differently. As a result of so many deaths, women were now being served by male servants and it did not matter if they were of noble birth or not. Men serving women was something taboo and unheard of before the plague, but the disease made that change. Noble women had to a find a different lifestyle under normal circumstances, these women would have been dishonored and shunned but this was not the case. Economic Effects All the death that fell upon Europe created a major labor shortage. It was a dominos affect, if the plague hit an area or manor in the summer, there wouldn’t be enough serfs to harvest the crops in the fall. If it hit in the winter, there wasn’t enough workers to plant new crops in the spring (â€Å"The Black Death, 1348†). So inevitably there wasn’t any one left on farm and maintain the land. The one’s who did withstand the plague, moved else-where for better wages (â€Å"The Black Death, 1348†). Not only did it affect the farms, it hurt businesses or building projects. Cathedral that usually were beautiful and performed weekly services were left eerily empty with no priests to conduct services. The barons did not have enough knights and serfs to cater to them and so many manors were abandoned. When someone dies normally, there would be a service and immediately be buried, well that didn’t happen during the Black Death era. No one was left to bury the dead. Citizens, lower and middle classes were scared, they stayed in the homes believing they would be safe. The shelter did not stop the disease from entering and since they were poor they did not get the care and attention they needed and most of them died (â€Å"The Black Death, 1348†). Instead of suffering, many decided to take their own lives and committed suicide in the street; others died in their homes but only found because their neighbors smelled the decaying body. Dead bodies were everywhere on every corner and in every home that wasn’t abandoned (â€Å"The Black Death, 1348†). â€Å"Most of them were treated in the same manner by the survivors, who were more concerned to get rid of their rotting bodies than moved by charity towards the dead. With the aid of porters, if they could get them, they carried the bodies out of the houses and laid them at the door; where every morning quantities of the dead might be seen. They then were laid on biers or, as these were often lacking, on tables† (â€Å"The Black Death, 1348†). Bodies upon bodies were brought to the church every day and almost every hour so it was impossible to give them a proper burial especially since they wanted to bury each person in the family grave, according to the old custom (â€Å"The Black Death, 1348†). â€Å"Although the cemeteries were full they were forced to dig huge trenches, where they buried the bodies by hundreds. Here they stowed them away like bales in the hold of a ship and covered them with a little earth, until the whole trench was full† (â€Å"The Black Death, 1348†). Cultural Effects The plague not only affected humans it also impacted the arts. In the Medieval period, people had concentrated mainly on the Church, God, and personal salvation. The plague was evident in paintings, sculptures, and architecture, everything was centered on death. The arrival of plague â€Å"harkened in a new darker era of painting. Paintings were overflowing with tortured souls, death, dying, fire and brimstone† (â€Å"The Effect of Black Death on Art and Artists in the Medieval Period†). Thousands of painters, craftsmen, patrons of the arts died during the plague. The disease tore a hole in the heart of the cultural world. The effects of the plague were lasting, bringing a somber darkness to visual art, literature, and music (â€Å"The Effect of Black Death on Art and Artists in the Medieval Period†). Writers and painters imaginations became dark and gloomy. The unknowing survival created a atmosphere of gloom and doom influencing artist to move away from optimistic themes and turn to images of Hell, Satan and the Grim Reaper (â€Å"The Effect of Black Death on Art and Artists in the Medieval Period†). Many painters simply gave up art with the idea that it was hopeless to try and create beauty in a hellish world. The Decameron by Boccaccio, a collection of medieval tales and folklore is the most famous literary work that came from that time period (â€Å"The Black Death†). The collection is set in the Italian countryside where aristocrats, fleeing the Plague as it ravages Florence, are stranded without their usual entertainments. To pass the time, they tell each other stories, from which Boccaccio harvested a rich storehouse of traditional narrative. The Decameron eventually became the foundation for many other Renaissance works, including several of Shakespeare’s plays (â€Å"The Black Death†). Positive Consequences It’s hard to find positive in so much death but the plague actually helped in a few ways. First being manpower, because of the shortages, manpower had so much more value. Peasants weren’t readily available in large numbers so the ones still alive found themselves in high demand (â€Å"The Black Death†). The ones who had all the power, kings and dukes, now found themselves bargaining with laborers over working conditions, and also the lower class were able to demand better pay for their services (â€Å"The Black Death†). Also, serfdom was terminated, so those peasants that were slaves and tied to the land were no longer obligated to farm and serve. And one other positive result of the bubonic plague was the development of medicine as a science in the West. Islamic doctors had advocating general cleanliness and the value of studying anatomy but Western healers prior to the black death were still using practices like the theory of humors (â€Å"The Black Death†). But when Plague wiped out nearly all the doctors of Europe, because the doctors had to attend to the dying and because of this were exposed at a higher rate to the more virulent pneumonic form of Plague. With so many doctors dying, it created a change in both personnel and precept (â€Å"The Black Death†). Strangely, western medicine owes much to plague. Conclusion The Black Death started in 1347 and continued for a full five years, this devastating plague spread throughout Europe, leaving more than twenty million people dead. The consequences to Europe were profound. Besides immeasurable death, traditional medieval society broke, the economies were fractured, and art and literature took a turn from light to dark. Though it spread throughout Europe, the Black Death was world-shattering and shows how even the smallest of things, the microbial world, can at times steer the course of human civilization.

GDP & Employment/Inflation Essay

Introduction The current GDP growth rate for the US economy stands at about 2.5%. It is interesting to note that in each of the last quarters of the years, the rate is higher, but at the start of a new year the rate decreases in the first quarter. For example 2011, QIV is 4.9% while 2012 QI is 3.7%.   The stage of the business cycle the US economy may be is the expansion/recovery stage since its GDP trends show increase in most of the quarters. The GDP of any country may not be considered as an accurate economic well-being measure of a country since it only measures one aspect, the economic performance of a country and ignores other issues (Gordon, & National Bureau of Economic Research Conference on Business Cycles, 1986). The limitations include GDP does not consider inflation or deflation, does not measure externalities and changes due to change in change in exchange rate and it does not measure black markets or illegal transactions (McEachern, & Thomson South-Western, 2008). Unemployment and Inflation The most surprising is the rate of unemployment separated on race basis. The rate for the blacks is quite higher, at about 12.0% in Feb. 2014, compared to 5.8% whites or even 8.1% Latinos or Hispanic in the same month. The rate for the unemployed blacks ranges about between 11% and 13% over the last periods. Unemployment is high in blacks, and teenagers at 21.4%. Men have higher rate of 6.4% in Feb.2014 compared to women at 5.9% which seems to change very slightly. Unemployment rate is low among the highly educated (Gordon, 2004). Women seem to have higher chances of employment since their unemployment rate is low compared to males. The teenagers are still in schools hence higher rate. The rates high rates of unemployment could also be attributed to inflation which causes loss of jobs (Carlberg, 2012). References Carlberg, M. (2012). Unemployment and inflation in economic crises. Berlin: Springer. Gordon, R. J. (2004). Productivity growth, inflation, and unemployment: The collected essays   Ã‚  Ã‚   of Robert J. Gordon. Cambridge (UK: Cambridge University Press. Gordon, R. J., & National Bureau of Economic Research Conference on Business Cycles.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   (1986). The American business cycle: Continuity and change. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. McEachern, W. A., & Thomson South-Western. (2008). Contemporary economics. Mason,   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Ohio: Thomson South-Western.