Computers in the Classroom :: Technology School Essays

PCs in the Classroom Over the previous decade the world has moved from a spot with minimal advanced innovation to one where PCs, video, and innovation are utilized regular. The utilization of this innovation can not be overlooked even in the homeroom. It is difficult to live in o9ur world today without presentation to PCs. As instructors it is a piece of our business to open understudies to utilizing PCs at an early age and to consolidate innovation into our exercises. During the center school years utilizing PCs are an extraordinary method to get understudies amped up for learning. It has even gotten obligatory as one of the NCTM (National Council for Teachers of Mathematics) norms. The innovation standard expresses that innovation causes understudies to completely comprehend numerical ideas (Principles 25). They are extraordinary apparatuses for a student. The hands on experience encourages the understudies to recall the ideas since they have something visual to reference (sway). The NCTM measures states, â€Å"Technology is basic in educating and learning arithmetic; it impacts the science that is instructed and improves understudies' learning† (Principles 25). As proposed, innovation ought not supplant the conventional showing systems, but instead improve them (sway). A large number of the understudies realize how to utilize the PCs for entertainment only things, for example, conversing with their companions, messing around, and riding the web. Be that as it may, barely any understudies realize that PCs can be utilized for instructive things both inside and outside of the homeroom. In math there are numerous approaches to utilize PCs in the homeroom. One approach to utilize PCs in the homeroom is by utilizing on the web math games and manipulatives to help educate and survey. In the class I am working with at Dunn Middle school they use games to help fortify the exercise and to audit for a test. During one audit meeting before a test the understudies got into three gatherings one at every PC. They at that point signed onto the PCs and played a parts game. The understudies contended with one another for the most right answers. The entirety of the understudies were included and delighted in a break from the regular guidance.

Rehabilitation Engineering Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Recovery Engineering - Coursework Example al., 2012).â In the resultant clinical augmentation, different free analysts need to arrange the exhibition of knee expansion with understanding to IKDC. Here, 16 knees that have deficiencies with respect to the scope of movement ought to be appraised by utilization of a conventional goniometer just as the estimation gadget for novel expansion. The radiological elements of the knee development edges that ought to be confined to the tibia and femur shaft is permitted to just have an orderly supreme mistake of about - 5.2 +/ - 1.9 degrees when contrasted with the lines set up by the rotational focuses. In a trial arrangement, the normal outright deviations ought to be at around 3.92 +/ - 1.41 with a goniometer and around 1.22 +/ - 0.20 degrees with regards to the next estimation gadget. Radiological knee expansion estimations that are constrained to the knee joint territory methodicallly go amiss from the all out hub estimations with respect to bones. A goniometer that utilizes the tibia and femur hard tourist spots is frequently prevalent as far as precision as contrasted and the long arm and standard goniometer methods (ADAM, MCDUFFIE, et. al., 2012).â Over a couple of decades, there has been a generous improvement with respect to Knee substitution medical procedure, mostly because of improved systems and strategies, improved gadgets and improved conversancy of knee and capacity and physiology. Progressively sturdy and fruitful knee substitution plans have bigly affected different clinical practices (DURIG, 2013). GPs need to comprehend something on a portion of the headways that have been accomplished just as how the clinical practices have changed subsequently, explicitly in the fragment of patient choice and patient appraisal medical procedure. GPs ought to have the capacity of recognizing irregular and ordinary advancement after such a medical procedure. Knee Replacement alludes to a surgery whereby prosthesis or a fake joint is utilized to supplant a wrecked

Young men commit most cases of violence - 1375 Words

Young men commit most cases of violence (Essay Sample) Content: NameProfessorCourseDate Essay 1: Young men commit most cases of violenceIntroduction The paper supports the topic as it is true that most young men are the key cause of violence in todays society. There are several contemporary causes of young men's violence in the community. Violence among the young men has also had various impacts to the world at large. For example, approximately, 200,000 die annually as a result of violence between themselves of with the society. One of the main reasons explaining why young men are more violent and their counterpart is that women are introverts thus not able to take part if most violence related cases. Peer pressure is one of the leading causes of violence among the youth. The neighborhood we live in impacts a lot of the life and behaviors of young men as peers act as role models. For example, one of the violence that the young men learn from peer is sexual harassment of their women counterparts. Since the young men are in thei r peak of their developmental stage, they are interred attracted to the opposite sex whom through the right process they engage, but as a result of poor conformity of behavior most young loose the interest of conforming to the right behaviors hence take the action harassing the opposite sex leading to sexual harassment. This behavior of the young men is the key cause of domestic violence in various households around the world. Learning and gaining life experience is one of the key attributes that every person has to get in order to get an outstanding future. Today, young men are not ready to learn or gain from the experience from their elders, thus marriage among the young men has been a problem since they are also not ready to share the problems with the experienced members of the society and as a result leads to intimate partner violence. Lack of employment is another cause of violence among young men in the contemporary society. The participation of both sexes in organizations various countries is coupled with disparities. Cultural norms and beliefs of various countries are known to be the leading causes of labor disparities. For example, young men in Africa are at war against their female counterparts. They consider that young female are not supposed to be considered for specific jobs and careers in the workplace. This has led to occupational violence against women. This concludes that gender inequalities in labor force participation have contributed to occupational violence against women. Gender discrimination has also contributed to violence among young men. An analysis of gender biases and perception indicates that most men discriminate their female counterparts not because they are unworthy, but because of the perception that exists in our countries respectively. For the political gender divide is one of the arenas depicting gender discrimination in the society. Politically, women are discriminated from careers, skills and abilities to lead others, hence the push and pull between men and women in the contemporary society. This push and pull leads to psychological and emotional violence against women. There are two stakeholders that are concerned with the issue violence caused by young men. The first is the government of respective countries and the other is the society in which the violence is being committed. Both the government and the society have a negative perception of violence; hence they are campaigning against this practice undertaken by young adults. Through social workers and other social analysts the society and the government are developing laws and policies to curb this mayhem. RecommendationThe government should formulate and implement social policies that help in curbing the problem of violence committed by young men.Social campaign should be undertaken to educate young men against the impacts of violence. Conclusion Social violence is just caused as a result of perception against sexes; whereby one sex discr iminates the other and result violence erupts. Relevant education and policies are the only key measures that should be used to alleviate this problem. Essay 2: Discuss; Full-time employed women just earns 80.9% of male salariesIntroduction The fight or the war against women discrimination has taken place since the 1960s whereby women organizations and movement were formed. This effort is also being undertaken in the contemporary society to alleviate discrimination against women. The equal pay act started in 1975, but since then women are still being paid less than their counterparts. The questions to be answered is that why is it more than 40 years now since the unequal pay was made illegal yet women are still being discriminated? According to social radical feminism, women considered as mothers are deprived their occupational rights whereby they are limiting their terms of service and remuneration. According to scholars, gendered division of labor and motherhood grow naturally, from women's roles as domestic care takers. This has been the cause of economic discrimination on women. Through globalizations, the world has increased its productivity and also workforce, both men and women have been considered as laborers in various organizations and workplaces, but all is not the same since women are not given the same remuneration as their male counterparts. The wage gap is too wide to define the differences, but various reasons have been highlighted or accounted for the wage gap between men and women. It is often considered that women are paid less due to their failure of being assertive about complaining or asking for a pay rise. Anti...

The Murders of Terrance Rankins and Eric Glover

On Jan. 9, 2014, Eric Glover and Terrance Rankins were invited to a home on North Hickory Street in Joliet, Illinois where Alisa Massaro, Bethany McKee, Joshua Miner and Adam Landerman were having a party. Glover and Rankins were killed and robbed of $120. Here are the fact surrounding the double-murder case. Adam Landerman Found Guilty June 15, 2015 - The fourth defendant charged with luring two black men to a house in Joliet, Illinois to rob and murder them has been found guilty. Adam Landerman, son of a Joliet police officer, was found guilty of the 2013 deaths of Terrance Ranking and Eric Glover. Testimony at his jury trial showed that Landerman strangled Glover while co-defendant Joshua Miner strangled Rankins. Landerman admitted to police that he took part in the plan to rob the two alleged marijuana dealers. Joshua Minor was the mastermind behind the plan to rob the two men. Landerman told police that he told Minor that he did not want to be involved in the robbery, but if a scuffle ensued, he would have Minors back. When sentenced, Landerman will face a mandatory life sentence. Minor and Bethany McKee both received life sentences after being found guilty last year in bench trials. The fourth defendant, Alisa Massaro, received a 10-year sentence in a plea deal in which she agreed to testify against the others. However, she only testified in McKees trial. The crime took place at Massaros home. Joshua Minor Found Guilty Oct. 8, 2014 - A judge has found another defendant guilty in the case known as the Nightmare on Hickory Street. Joshua Miner was found guilty of the murders of Eric Glover and Terrance Rankins after he declined a trial by jury. Will County Judge Gerald Kinney found Minor guilty of six counts of first-degree murder. The evidence presented at trial leaves little, if any, doubt that this defendant caused the death of Terrance Rankins, Judge Kinney said. The defendant admits that he planned to rob the individuals. He faces a mandatory life sentence. Joshua Miner Waves Jury Trial Sept. 22, 2014 - The alleged mastermind of a plot to lure two men to a party at a home in Joliet, Illinois so that they could be killed and robbed is facing a bench trial this week for the murders of Eric Glover and Terrance Rankins. As jury selection was about to begin Monday, Joshua Miner waved his right to a trial by jury and is being tried before the same judge that found co-defendant Bethany McKee guilty in an earlier bench trial. In early testimony, police officers said that when they arrived at the scene, Miner told them he killed one of the victims and co-defendant Adam Landerman killed the other. Alisa Massaro, who accepted a plea deal for a lesser charge, is expected to testify in Miners trial, which is expected to last one week. Bethany McKee Guilty of Murder Aug. 29, 2014 - A 20-year-old Illinois woman has been found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder for her part in the deaths of two 22-year-old black men. Will County Judge Gerald Kinney found Bethany McKee guilty in the deaths of Eric Glover and Terrance Rankins in a house in Joliet. Judge Kinney said McKee played a key role in luring the two men to the house so that they could be killed and robbed. Closing arguments were presented in McKees bench trial on August 12. Judge Kinney said at the time he would issue a verdict on Aug. 29. A review of those facts shows a stunning lack of respect for human life as well as a stunning lack of concern for the consequences of taking two human lives, Kinney said. In this ruling, Kinney said McKee had many opportunities to back out of the plot, but instead talked with co-defendants about getting rid of the bodies and spent her share of the money stolen from the victims. The defense had argued that McKee wasnt in the room when the two were killed. Defense attorney Chuck Bretz said McKee made poor decisions after the murders, but she was not guilty of murder. Two other defendants - Joshua Miner, 26, and Adam Landerman, 21 - still face trial. They are accused of actually strangling the two men. A fourth defendant, Alisa Massaro, pleaded guilty to lesser charges after agreeing to testify against the others. When McKee is sentenced Oct. 16, she will face a mandatory life-without-parole sentence under Illinois law. Trial Set for Bethany McKee Aug. 5, 2014 - Trial will begin next week for 20-year-old Bethany McKee, one of four suspects accused of the murder and robbery of Eric Glover and Terrance Rankins, who were killed in Joliet, Illinois last year. McKee was arrested along with Joshua Miner, 26, Adam Landerman, 21, and Alisa Massaro, 22, for the murders of the two black men, which took place at Massaros home. McKee claims she left the party before the murders took place and that Glover and Rankins were still alive when she left. Alisa Massaro pleaded guilty in May to robbery and concealment of a homicide in a deal that gave her a 10-year sentence. She is expected to testify in McKees trial next week. Miners Statements Ruled Admissible June 19, 2014 - Statements made to police by one of the four defendants, accused of luring two 22-year-old black men to a home where they were killed and robbed, can be used against him in his trial. A judge has ruled that statements given to police by Joshua Miner, one of the defendants charged with the murders of Eric Glover and Terrance Rankins are admissible and can be used against him in court. Miner, Adam Landerman, 20; Bethany McKee, 19; and Alisa Massaro, 20; are accused of alluring Glover and Rankins - both 22 - to Massaros house where they were killed and robbed of money and drugs. Lea Norbut, Miners attorney, had argued that Miner, 25, should have been provided with an attorney after he inquired about one during the interviews with investigators. Prosecutor John Connor argued, and the judge agreed, that Miner was informed of his right to have an attorney and he waived that right and spoke to police willingly. Massaro took a plea deal and was sentenced to 10 years in May. McKees trial is scheduled to begin July 21. Woman Gets 10 Years in Double Murder Plea Deal May 23, 2014 - A 20-year-old Illinois woman has been given a 10-year prison sentence to reduced charges in a double homicide case in exchange for her testimony against her three co-defendants. Alissa Massaro pleaded guilty to four felony charges in connection with the deaths of Terrance Rankins and Eric Glover in 2013. She pleaded guilty to two counts of robbery and two counts of concealment of a homicide. Prosecutors said that Massaro and her three co-defendants - Joshua Miner, 25; Adam Landerman, 20; and Bethany McKee, 19 - lured the victims to Massaros house in January 2013. Rankins and Glover, both 22 years old, were strangled and they were robbed of the money and drugs found on their dead bodies. Planned to Dismember Bodies In previous statements, prosecutors said that Massaro and Miner callously played video games and partied after the murders. Police reports also revealed that they planned to dismember the victims bodies before disposing of them. Although the murders took place at Massaros home, 40 miles southwest of Chicago in Joliet, prosecutor Dan Walsh told the court that the actual killings took place outside of Massaros presence. Walsh did say that Massaro did not alter authorities or her father about the crime. Credit for Time Served Technically, Massaro will serve two consecutive five-year sentences on the robbery charges and serve two consecutive three-year sentences for concealing the crimes concurrently with the robbery sentences. She will be given credit for the 16 months she served in jail awaiting trial. George Lenard, Massaros attorney, said her plea deal was based on the evidence in the case and her willingness to testify against the others. If the others go to trial, and if she is called as a witness, she will testify truthfully, Lenard told reporters. Plea Deal Surprised Other Defendants Miner, Landerman, and McKee all still face first-degree murder charges. In a hearing last week, a prosecution motion to have each of them tried separately was granted by Judge Gerald Kinney. According to news reports, Massaros plea deal came as a surprise to the other defendants, especially 19-year-old McKee, who was seen crying when she learned of the deal. Bill McKee, her father, said the deal was a shock because his daughter has not been approached about a plea bargain even though, he said, he was not in the house at the time of the murders. McKee Told Her Father McKee said his daughter left the Massaros home before the slayings and she told him that Rankins and Glover were still alive when she left. When she left the house, she called her father and told him about the situation and it was McKee that called the police. McKee was arrested later at her Shorewood home, while the other three were arrested at the scene, McKee said. Police reports at the time said the three were still partying while the two victims were lying dead in the North Hickory Street home. Miner to Be Tried First I think its sad, Bill McKee told reporters. The sentence she got, its reprehensible. After winning the motion to try the three remaining defendants separately, prosecutors decided to put Miner on trial first. No date has been set for his trial. The three defendants are scheduled for another hearing on June 16. Sources CBS News:Â  Illinois Woman Takes Plea, Gets 10 Years for Double MurderChicago Tribune:Â  Defendants in Joliet Double-Homicide to Be Tried Separately

`` Bartleby, The Scrivener, And Harlan Ellison s ``...

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, sanity is â€Å"the condition of having a healthy mind [or] the condition of being based on reason or good judgement† (Merriam-Webster). Using this definition, the question to address would then be what constitutes having a healthy mind? Some people believe that in order to be seen as having this you have to be â€Å"normal†. For some this term is the â€Å"equivalent of [being] oblivious and you [are] ‘abnormal’ when you [are] sentient, human, and real† (Maisel, 2011). This concept of what is normal and what is not is dependent upon how everyone in the society around them acts. Therefore, someone who is not deemed as being â€Å"normal† cannot be seen as having a healthy mind and having a good sense of judgement because they are too perceptive to the world around them. In Herman Melville’s â€Å"Bartleby, the Scrivener† and Harlan Ellison’s â€Å" ‘Repent, Harlequin!â⠂¬â„¢ Said the Ticktockman† the principal characters are ostracized by the society’s they live in for this very reason. Being that both of the characters are mindful enough to rebel against what society expects of them, they can be perceived as exhibiting a form of â€Å"divinest sense†. When one looks at the phrase â€Å"divinest sense† they would conclude that it means that the individual possesses some form of god-like consciousness. Although as previously discussed, to the rest of society the person would be ridden off as being insane because they are too aware of their surroundings. The whole concept

Children and Young Peoples Development free essay sample

This is a very fast period of physical development. As newborn babies have very little control over their bodies especially their heads. Movements are linked to their reflexes which they need in order to survive. In the first year however they will learn to have more control over their bodies so that by the time they hit 12 months most babies will have developed some degree of motorbility i. e. crawling/rolling. As they begin their second year babies will continue to grow and develop and walking begins. They begin to use 0 – 3 Years From birth many adults will try to communicate with babies even though they know they are not able to understand and communicate back. It is important to communicate with babies as it helps to stimulate and is good for them to feel that people are interested in them. For those babies who are not communicated with from an early age it is found that they struggle to learn the skills of effective communication later on in life. Babies will enjoy songs and games, most will begin to attempt to speak at approximately 12 months, this can either be earlier and can be later. Between the age of one and two years babies start to put words together and they will be a bit more pronounced. Their vocabulary starts to increase rapidly so that by the time they reach the age of 2 they will know in the region of 200 words. Between two and three years they will start to use plurals in their speech, using negatives as well. Grammatically there are still errors being made such as â€Å"I drawed it† 3 – 7 Years This age is when children become more social and vocal. They will use familiar phrases and expressions. They will be very questionable. Skills will improve especially in the fine motor skills department with them learning how to read and write. 7 – 12 Years Children will be refining their skills of reading and writing, they will become more fluent in their mother tongue and as thus will enable them to discuss ideas and understand their learning a lot better. They will begin to form their own ideas and vocalise these. 12 – 18 Years Young people now have a firm idea of their likes and dislikes. They will find that in the areas that they have their favourite ideas and subjects and will often pour all their efforts into it. They will be at an emotional time selecting GCSE’s and A Levels and as the year’s progress taking them. Many young people through this time often lack confidence and avoid situations which they are not comfortable. 16 – 19 Years As young people come to leaving full time education or continuing onto college, 6th Form and then University, they are filled with lots of choices, these can often be overwhelming. c)Social, Emotional and Behavioural Development 0-3 Years All children need help in finding out who they are and their personalities. All babies need to form strong attachment, most of the time this is with the primary caregiver, namely the mother. As a child begins nursery, some starting a lot earlier than others, they are allocated a Key Worker, this is the person that they typically have the strongest bond. All children at this stage will have tantrums, these mainly occur though frustration, simply because they cannot vocalise what they want. They will start to be encouraged to do things for themselves and this is very important in their social development. 3 – 7 Years At this age the children are finding out their identities. They will be developing their imagination and will socialise using this kind of play, including role play which they use to help define the different areas in their life, ie playing mummies and babies, doctors. They will often play in a fantasy land, fairies and the like. They are beginning to understand the purpose of rules and why they have to follow them. It is important to start delegating responsibilities to the children once they srart school. They thrive off approval at this age. 7 – 12 Years Friendships should become less tempestuous and more solid, giving children confidence in themselves. They require the chance to be more independent although will still need guidance, praise and encouragement. They will be very self aware of others thoughts and feelings towards themselves. 12 – 16 Years Self esteem at this age can be very vulnerable; this is typically because of the start of puberty. Although the body may have taken on the physical signs of adulthood their maturity is still catching up and may act very childish at times. They will want to be independent and spend more time with their peers. Sometimes they may not know how to act in their surroundings and struggle with the pressures of growing up and the expectations which are being thrust upon them. 16 – 19 Years These are young adults now. They will accept criticism and will need guidance and advice from adults around them. They will lack experience in areas and as they are individuals will vary in emotional maturity. Girls, as written previously will reach emotional maturity before the males. 1. 2Describe with examples how different aspects of development can affect one another. Although we have different headings for development, we are advised to remember that all aspects of child and young person’s development interlock. For example someone’s physical development also affects a person’s ability to become grow in confidence, thus helping them become independent and socialise well. 2. 1Describe with examples the kinds of influences that affect children and young peoples development including a)Background All pupils come from different backgrounds, environment, cultures and circumstances, no two children are the same. Many families have issues which they may be going through at home and haven’t informed school about. These can be one of many things, typically they can include, family break ups, the introduction of a new partner, bereavement in the family. These all have a major impact on a child’s development. b)Health If pupils suffer from poor health, physical disability or impairment it may restrict their developmental opportunities. For example a child who has a physical impairment may be unable or less able to participate in some activities. Emotionally this will have impacted the child as they will be in some cases be aware of their needs and may feel excluded. It is important as a school that we recognise the child’s inclusion in all aspects of schools. c)Environment We have to remember that a child’s environment is very important to their upbringing; they may live in areas of poverty or deprivation and thus struggle to thrive and respond to situations in school. If a child is a looked after child this can also affect development as they may not be achieving their targets. These children are very closely monitored by outside agencies and therefore any problems are easily addressed. 2.2 Describe with examples the importance of recognising and responding to concerns about children and young people’s development. If you have any concerns with a child’s development then it is imperative that you share your thoughts with others, initially this should be to the child’s class teacher who should refer the issues to the SENCO. In a secondary school you may wish to go straight to the SENCO. Often concerns will have been noted by others and it is important to inform others of your concerns as well. If possible you should give dates and examples for the reasons for your concerns so that they can be backed up. We must remember that the school should always inform the parents of any concerns which they may have with the child. 3. 1 Identify the transitions experienced by most children and young people. The transitions which are experienced by most children and young people are usual. Many involve the transition from home to pre-school, starting mainstream education, and in school life passing through year group to year group. If your school is only an infant school the child will have the transition from infant to junior school and then the transition to high school. Simple things like changes in timetable at school to change of staffing. The other change which will occur is that of puberty. 3. 2 Identify the transitions that only some children and young people may experience. The transitions that only some children and young people may experience are:- Bereavement Parental separation Parental change of partner The birth of a new sibling Moving house Change of carer (for looked after children) Illness or injury 3. 3 Describe with examples how transitions may affect children and young people’s behaviour and development. Transitions can affect children’s behaviour and development in many ways. We need to ensure that children in school feel secure and have positive relationship at all times but especially during these testing and upsetting times for them. An example of how the transition of bereavement may affect the child is that they may become withdrawn and quiet, be anxious and display uncharacteristic behaviour. Another example of a transition is that if a child is moving through year groups or schools, it may appear an exiting time and rightly so it is, but for some children, they struggle with this change and this is when they may begin to show uncharacteristic behaviour. In order to support children through this time we encourage visits to classrooms, meeting the teachers and support staff and giving them taster sessions. If a child is moving to their Junior School, visits are welcomed, open days/evenings, meeting the staff and giving them a taster of a day in the life at the new school. Many schools offer a buddy system whereby they have a child which they are friendly with from the same school, paired into the same class. This often creates something familiar for the child as well which eases the transition.

Risks of Cancer Using Statins an Example of the Topic Health Essays by

Risks of Cancer Using Statins Introduction HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors or popularly known as Statin falls under hypolipidemic drugs, which is commonly used to decrease cholesterol levels in people at risk or with cardiovascular disease. (Branett, pp. 40-41) Several studies were conducted by cancer experts that presented evidences of statin drugs preventing different types of cancer. Need essay sample on "Risks of Cancer Using Statins" topic? We will write a custom essay sample specifically for you Proceed Statins Lower Prostate Cancer Risk Latest research presented that the popular drug statin is really good for more than the heart as it decreases the risk of advanced prostate cancer by 50% based on more than 30,000 men during a 10-year study.Elizabeth Platz, ScD, MPH, a Cancer Epidemiologist of Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore found the effects of statin promising. The longer men took statins, the lower the risk of advanced prostate cancer, she said.A new study was presented during the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research. The study showed that 34, 000 men were free of prostate cancer in 1990.Every two years, Platz studied these men if they use statins and whether they are diagnosed with prostate cancer. Platz and her team confirmed the diagnosis if these men declared they had cancer.Approximately 2,000 men had prostate cancer, wherein 283 cases were advanced prostate cancer, while most of them are having spread outside the prostate.Looking unto the statistics of t hose who had statins and those who had not, people who used statins lessen the chance of advance prostate cancer by 50%.(Laino, webmd) Statin use and Breast Cancer in Older Women Experts tested their hypothesis that older women reduce breast cancer if they use statins.The test was conducted at four community-based clinical centers in US, using 7528 participants of Caucasian women in their 70s. In 244 cases, joined pathology reports and medical records showed main outcome measure was breast cancer that is identified over an average of 6.8 years.Over 576 women were reported using statins. The age-adjusted incidence of breast cancer was 3.1/1000 person-years among statin users, 1.4 among women using other lipid-lowering agents, and 5.0 among nonusers. After adjustment for age and body weight, the relative risk of breast cancer among statin users was 0.28 (95% confidence intervals, and among women who used other lipid-lowering drugs, it was 0.37 (95% CI 0.14-0.99) in comparison to nonusers.Tests showed that statin drug users reduced 68% of risk in breast cancer.They therefore conclude those older women who used statins may have decreased the risk of breast cancer . The widespread use of statins by older women will have a great public health impact.(Cauley, doi:10.1089) Statins may cut risk of Colon Cancer Another benefit of using statin drugs may ward off colon cancer according to the American Society for Clinical Oncology (ASCO) A study was led by Stephen Gruber, MD, PhD, of the University of Michigan using 1,608 participants of Israelis infected by colorectal cancer and 1,734 participants of Israelis free from disease. Gruber and his colleagues checked on the participants lifestyle factors that could influence colon cancer risk and their use of statins.From observation, the participants taking statin drugs for 5 years or more cut their risk of colon cancers than those who not.Out of all the participants, only 267 used statin drugs that long, while 95% of them used other cholesterol lowering-drugs. These drugs such as fibrates, pravachols, and zocors did not demonstrate any effect on the risk of colon cancer.(cancer.org) Statins shown to prevent Lung Cancer Researchers of Medical Center in Louisiana State University and the Overton Brooks VA conducted a study using data collection of a large population of 483, 733 patients (composed of cancer-free and with lung cancer) over 6 years in VA Health Care System.From the total population, 7, 280 participants had lung cancer while 163, 662 were having stamin drugs. The use of stamins was defined as time of usage prior to lung cancer diagnosis and/or time of usage until the data gathering was finished.In the results, it was found out that using statins for 6 months or more reduces the risk of lung cancer up to 55%. Taking in statin drugs for more than 6 months will decrease chances of lung cancer across all age groups, whether smoker or not.(sciencedaily.com, 2007) Statins not effective cure for cancer Two studies showed that Statins do not reduce or cure any kind of cancer.First is a study at Journal of the American Medical Association, wherein scientists picked 27 former articles tackling 87,000 patients and studied overall cancer risks. Next, is at the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, wherein researches took 132,00 people in American Cancer Society and studied them primarily focusing on colon cancer.Patients should not take statins in hopes of preventing any cancer. The drugs cost 2 to 3 dollars a day and pose a risk of damaging liver and muscles, said Michael White, Professor at the University of Connecticut states.(preventdisease.com)Not only that statin is not effective as cure for cancer, it might even provoke cancer because of the lowering in cholesterol.It is suspected that some cancer cases rooted from statins as a consequence of the low levels of bad LDL cholesterol produced by taking them. Conclusion Many studies were already conducted that demonstrated how statins can lower the risk of various cancers. Based from some laboratory and animal studies, statins provide protective effects.Although studies proved that statin drugs decrease the risks of certain cancers such as prostate, this is the first time that experts tracked medication use before the study participants developed cancer, Platz stressed.We are not yet ready to prescribe statins for patients who do not have an abnormality, said Dr. Vikas Khurana of Louisiana State University, an author of the statin study, stressing to people with high cholesterol.The studies tackled above are really promising, but lots of stringent experiments and studies should be done before doctors recommend statin drugs to their patients as cancer prevention. As statins continue to present good effects, its not impossible that it can develop side effects particularly in liver and muscles. Before they prescribe statins as a cancer prevention drug, they should first secure the risks of possible side effects.There could be a greater risk in the long run than the early benefits it gives to patients. References: Branett, Megan. Statins. U.S. News and World Report v. 135 no. 22 (Dec. 22, 2003) pp. 40-41 Jane A. Cauley, Statins on Breast Cancer. Journal of Women's Health. 2003, 12(8): 749-756. doi:10.1089/154099903322447710. Laino, Charlene. Prostate Cancer and Statins. From website http://www.webmd.com retrieved January 4, 2008. Cholesterol Drug cutting Colon Cancer. Statins preventing Lung Cancer. Statins dont help with cancer.

Common Application Sample Short Answer on Riding Horses

Common Application Sample Short Answer on Riding Horses Many college applications, including those with supplemental essays on the Common Application, include a short answer section that asks a question along these lines: Please elaborate on one of your extracurricular activities or work experiences. The question provides an opportunity for you to tell the admissions folks a little more about something that you truly care about, or an activity that has had a meaningful impact on your life. As Lauras short answer illustrates, the focus of the essay doesnt have to be a formal school activity or a competitive sport. Laura simply writes about something she loves, and in the process provides a window into her personality and passions. Laura's Short Answer Essay In response to her college applications short answer question on an extracurricular activity, Laura wrote about her love of horseback riding: I dont ride for blue ribbons or Olympic golds, although I respect and admire those chosen few who do. I dont ride for the workout, although my trembling muscles at the end of a good lesson indicate otherwise. I dont ride because I have anything to prove, although Ive proven a lot to myself along the way. I ride for the feeling of two individual beings becoming one, so perfectly matched that its impossible to tell where rider ends and horse begins. I ride to feel the staccato beat of hooves against dirt echoed in the rhythm of my own heart. I ride because it isnt easy to navigate a creature with a mind of its own around a course of solid obstacles, but in that perfect moment when horse and rider work as one, it can be the easiest thing in the world. I ride for an affectionate nose nudging my shoulder as I turn to leave, searching for a treat or a pat or murmured words of praise. I ride for myself, but for my horse as well, my partner and my equal. Critique of Laura's Short Answer Essay Its important to note what Lauras short answer does and does not do. It does not tout a major accomplishment. Her first sentence, in fact, explicitly tells us that this is not going to be an essay about winning blue ribbons. The short answer certainly is a place where you can elaborate on your accomplishments as an athlete, but Laura has taken a different approach to the task at hand. What clearly comes across in Lauras short essay is her love of horseback riding. Laura isnt someone who rides horses in an effort to build up her extracurricular activity resume. She rides horses because she loves riding horses. Her passion for her favorite activity is unquestionable. Another positive feature of Lauras short answer is the writing itself. The tone is understated, not boastful. The repetition of sentence structure (I dont ride.. in the first paragraph and I ride... in the second), creates a rhythmic feel to the essay much like the riding of a horse itself. This type of repetition wouldnt hold up for a longer essay, but for the short answer it can create a type of prose poem. The college is asking for this short answer and the longer personal essay because the school has holistic admissions. The admissions counselors want to get to know you as a person, to see the unique individual behind the grades and standardized test scores. Lauras short answer does well on this front; she comes across as an observant, passionate, and compassionate woman. In short, she sounds like the type of student who would be a welcome addition to a campus community. As far as length goes, Lauras essay comes in at just under 1,000 characters, and this tends to be right around the ideal short answer length. That said, be sure to read the guidelines carefully- the length guidelines can vary from 100 to 250 words (or even more) for this type of essay, and youll want to follow the colleges guidelines carefully. Lauras essay, like all essays, isnt perfect. When she states that she has  proven a lot to [her]self along the way, she doesnt develop this point. What exactly has she learned from her experience with horseback riding? How exactly has horseback riding changed her as a person? In such a limited space, however, the admissions folks wont be looking for too much depth and introspection. More Short Answer Resources By following a few guidelines for writing a winning short answer, you can assure that your little essay strengthens your application. Be sure to pick an activity that is truly important to you, not one that you think will impress the admissions folks. Also make sure every word counts- theres absolutely no room for wordiness in such a short piece. Finally, be careful to avoid some of the most common short answer mistakes. Realize that even a short answer on working at Burger King can be effective if it reveals the value of the work experience. On the flip side, a short answer on starting your own business can weaken your application if the focus and tone are off. How you write your short answer is in many ways more important than what you write about. A Final Word Its easy to pay so much attention to the primary application essay that you rush off responses to the shorter supplemental essays. Dont make this mistake. Each essay gives you an opportunity to showcase a side of your personality and passions that isnt readily visible elsewhere in your application. Indeed, if horseback riding was the focus of Lauras main essay, the topic would be a poor choice for her short answer. If her primary essay has a different focus, then her short answer does an excellent job showing that she is a well-rounded student with a wide range of interests.

Discussion document Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Discussion document - Essay Example He believes in handling challenges head on and rolls up his sleeves to handle the same rather than delegating people to accomplish such tasks for him. He is the ideal leader because rather than him being a boss, he is a team player that has made him to earn respect among those that he works with and also those that he trains. Hal Bagley works mostly with his wife, Baadrea in the many training projects as both of them also head the LGT Executive Coaching. Both of them bring different skills to the table as she focuses on enhancing personal growth and interpersonal skills for clients, which is an essential part of the training program. Therefore, Hal credits most of his success to team effort as working alone can never be a key to achieving the major milestones that one seeks to achieve in the corporate world. Other than being involved in training the leadership of top performing companies and a number of non-profit leadership boards, the Bagleys also run a non profit organization that seeks to give stability to single parents together with their children. The organization is run by a group of about 200 volunteers headed by an executive director and board of directors, which is impacting the lives of hundreds in a significant way. Hal is not involved in improving the corporate world, but he also seeks to help those that that are the bottom of the ladder. So far Bagley’s results from the corporate trainings include influencing the streamlining of employees of an organization, which in turn has helped in simplifying audits by up to 5 times. Further, Hal helped with the integration of privately owned company with a Fortune 100 company, which led the 200 person, company increasing from $36M to $72 million in just two years. Additionally, this company through the guidance of Bagley was able to successfully implement HR systems, IT systems program management processes and AS9100 certification among a list of other

Could a seniority Based Pay be used as a Motivation Device (MBA Essay

Could a seniority Based Pay be used as a Motivation Device (MBA DISSERTATION) - Essay Example The purpose of the present research was to establish if the seniority based plan can act as a motivational device. Towards this, a qualitative research was conducted where the managers and the employees were asked to give their opinion about Favourable/unfavourable aspect of the plan, and also to make suggestions to improve it. The responses indicated that employees at Federal Foods Ltd appeared to be approving of the concept of seniority based pay, but were concerned about problems with its implementation. Employees at Federal Foods Ltd appreciated the opportunity to be judged on merit, the money offered by the plan, and the incentive to of raise through seniority; but they were concerned with the quality of the goals that were set and with a lack of fairness or a perception of favouritism in the allocation of rewards. The offered suggestion included an appeal to inculcate fairness in the implementation of the plan, to make relevant goals contingent upon the pay and to involve worke rs in the entire process. The participant observation that was carried out by the researchers revealed that the supervisors who acted as their conduit to the senior managers motivated the workers. Other factors that can be attributed to motivating the employees include, realistic and fair budgets, and the encouragement to exercise self-evaluation. It was also observed that among those hired-with-tenure, Federal Foods Ltd employees with 3 to 15 years of seniority earned approximately 8 to 10 percent more than new hires with tenure; and Federal Foods Ltd employees with 16 or more years of seniority earn over 15 percent more than those with 2 or fewer years of seniority. Among Federal Foods Ltd employees who have exhibited a willingness and ability to change employers there are positive returns to seniority. It was also found that the rising returns to seniority among Federal Food Ltd employees are consistent across gender and across departments. The in depth

Palliative and Hospice for End of Life Care Essay Example for Free

Palliative and Hospice for End of Life Care Essay The notion of death and the process of dying are often experienced as tragedies, especially in the western culture. Thus, the medical model of care performed in our western culture includes life-saving measures and curative treatments. However, there may be a time in a person’s life when a cure may no longer be an option. That is the time when palliative or hospice care can step in to afford the patient and the family the opportunity to maximize the remaining time spent together. This paper will compare and contrast palliative care with the hospice model. In addition, end-of-life care related to physical well-being, psychological well-being, social well-being, and spiritual well-being will be addressed based on my experience as a student nurse with Hospice of San Joaquin. Finally, the views of end-of-life care will be discussed as it relates to the hospice model. Palliative care and hospice care share a common thread. They are both models of care that take a holistic and individualized approach to anticipate and alleviate the symptoms and suffering that arise from chronic and terminal illnesses (Witt Sherman, D. , Cheon, J. , 2012). They both encompass the patient and family as the center of care and provide comprehensive assessments and comfort measures to patients with terminal illnesses. The care continues past the death of the patient and can continue into the bereavement period for family. Hospice will continue to support the bereaved family up to one year past the death of the patient (Hospice of San Joaquin, 2010). Both models utilize an interdisciplinary approach to care with team members that include physicians, nurses, social workers, spiritual members, massage therapists, and home health aids and others. Palliative care can be utilized during any time during the course of an illness and disease process. The cost of cure can be extensive and both palliative and hospice care limit medical interventions that can significantly increase healthcare costs. Data substantiating improved quality of life for the patient and the families as well as improved coordination of care have been identified as valuable outcomes in both palliative and hospice care (Hospice of San Joaquin, 2010). Both models allow for services to be provided in the home, in extended care facilities, hospitals, and community home-based programs and outpatient clinics (Witt Sherman, D. , Cheon, J. , 2012). The differences between the programs are centered on the time the care is available. Palliative care is available during any point of the illness from time of diagnosis through the bereavement period for families. In addition, palliative care may be offered while life-prolonging treatments are being administered (Witt Sherman, D. Cheon, J. , 2012). Hospice care is available during the end of life and typically, but not always, takes place the last six months of the patient’s life. If the dying process exceeds six months, hospice care can be suspended and restarted when the patient’s life expectancy falls below six months (Hospice of San Joaquin, 2010). Hospice care may be offered in all settings previously mentioned, as well as hospice units and residential hospices (Witt Sherman, D. , Cheon, J. , 2012).

Injuries and Ailments of Hamsters :: Hamsters Animals Veternarians Essays

Injuries and Ailments of Hamsters In general, hamsters (especially those in the wild) are robust little animals and aren't affected by many natural diseases. But, they are very susceptible to the infectious diseases of other animals, including humans. Many of the problems and ailments now associated with hamsters are a direct result of captivity. Because they are small, a minor illness can rapidly become major if immediate treatment isn't pursued. Since they are nocturnal many of the early signs of illness are not noticed. To insure good health, hamsters should be checked regularly: to include eating habits, exercise habits, teeth, limbs, body check for lumps, cuts and abrasions, etc. etc. A sick hamster generally becomes irritable and "bitey." They frequently become lethargic or walk almost stiff-legged if forced to move or may sit in a "hunched" position. The eyes are usually dull, sunken and sometimes watery. And, they don't eat much, which results in weight loss. SYMPTOM POSSIBLE CAUSE Blood in Urine Bladder & Kidney Infection Bloody Diarrhea Intussusception Breathing Heavy Shock - Colds & Influenza Broken Limb Broken Limb Bulging Anus Constipation - Intussusception - Rectal Prolapse Closed Eye(s) Impacted Pouch - Irritated Eyes Constipation Endoparasites Crusty Lesions in ears, face, feet Ear Mites Cuts & Bites Abscesses - Cuts & Bites Dragging Hind Quarters Broken Limb - Cage Paralysis - Hind Limb Paralysis Dry Scaly Skin Demodicosis - Mange - Mites - Ringworm - Sarcoptic Mange Eating Babies Cannibalism Eggs in Feces Endoparasites Excessive Drinking Bladder & Kidney Infection - Diabetes Extreme Diarrhea Tyzzer's Disease - Wet Tail Eye Rupture Eye Prolapse

Essay on dickin’s journey to niagra Essay

Dickens felt transported by the sublimity of Niagara Falls when he visited it on his 1842 journey to the United States and Canada. In a letter to Forster (26 April 1842), he said of Horseshoe Falls (the Canadian side of Niagara) that â€Å"It would be hard for a man to stand nearer God than he does there† (Letters 3: 210). Dickens proceeds to effuse over the beauty and majesty of the falls in a passage that forms the chief part of his description of his experience in American Notes, although the letter actually offers the superior account: There was a bright rainbow at my feet; and from that I looked up to –great Heaven! To what a fall of bright green water! The broad, deep, mighty stream seems to die in the act of falling; and, from its unfathomable grave arises that tremendous ghost of spray and mist which is never laid, and has been haunting this place with the same dread solemnity–perhaps from the creation of the world (Letters 3: 210-11). In this essay, I analyze Dickens’s reaction to Niagara Falls in the context of other British travel narratives from the previous decade, and examine how Niagara speaks to Dickens of life after death (as he describes it above, the falls die and then rise again in ghostly mist). His profound experience at Niagara Falls shaped his treatment of climactic, transcendent moments in subsequent novels; in particular, from this point on Dickens repeatedly uses water imagery (especially seas, swamps and rivers) as symbols of death, rebirth, transformation and of being disturbed with â€Å"the joy of elevated thoughts,† to use Wordsworth’s phrase in â€Å"Tintern Abbey.† But Dickens’s reaction was more than just a typical Romantic experience, similar to those of other nineteenth-century British travelers; it was in part shaped by his overall disappointment in America and his relief to be on English ground again. Niagara Falls fulfills several definitions of the sublime. Philosophers since Longinus have used the term â€Å"sublime† to refer to experiences that go beyond the everyday, that inspire awe, that involve a sense of grandeur, that elevate one’s thoughts and feelings and that exceed the capacity of human descriptive powers. Longinus, of course, used the term in reference to rhetoric, but later philosophers found many of the same qualities in sublime scenes of nature. Edmund Burke in his Philosophical Enquiry into the Origin of Our Ideas of the Sublime and Beautiful (1757) emphasized the role of terror in the sublime, for only the presence of fear, he felt, could account for the complete overwhelming of all other thoughts and sensations in experiencing sublime scenes in nature. Alexander Gerard in â€Å"An Essay on Taste† (1759) stressed the importance of physical immensity in the experience of the sublime: â€Å"When a large object is presented, the mind expands itself to the extent of that object, and is filled with one grand sensation, which totally possessing it, composes it into a solemn sedateness and strikes it with deep silent wonder and admiration† (11). Similarly, the Romantics, and particularly Wordsworth, felt that natural scenes that impress the viewer with their immensity and particularly their power, such as mountains or waterfalls, create sublime sensations that feed the soul and the poetic imagination both at the moment and in the future by the aid of imagination and memory. Niagara Falls embodies all the qualities traditionally associated with the sublime–its immensity, power, and beauty overawe viewers, reminding them, particularly in nineteenth-century accounts, of the presence of other awe-inspiring forces such as death and God. Niagara Falls, oddly enough, fits even the scientific definition of sublime, which is â€Å"to cause to pass from solid to the vapor state by heating and againcondense to solid form.† Not by heating but by motion and pressure the falls turn water into vapor, the ever present mist that surrounds them, and the vapor eventually returns again to the falls, a cycle that led Dickens to use death/resurrection imagery in the description quoted above (i.e. â€Å"The broad, deep, mighty stream seems to die in the act of falling; and, from its unfathomable grave arises that tremendous ghost of spray and mist which is never laid†). It is the never-ending presence of great volumes of spray that leads to the ever-present rainbows in descriptions and paintings of the falls, such as Frederic Church’s famous 1857 painting, â€Å"Niagara.† The rainbows naturally heighten the spiritual effect of the falls as they are the perfect image of a bridge between earth and heaven and are the symbol of God’s covenant with man in the flood story in Genesis. They are also a striking conjunction of energy (light) and matter (water particles) and as  such are a powerful metaphor for the presence of the divine on earth. It is the rainbows that seem to move Dickens the most on his second visit to Niagara in 1868, a quarter of a century after his first visit, a trip he took purely for pleasure. As he wrote to Forster on March 16, 1868: The majestic valley below the Falls, so seen through the vast cloud of spray, was made of rainbow. The high banks, the riven rocks, the forests, the bridge, the buildings, the air, the sky, were all made of rainbow. Nothing in Turner’s finest water-colour drawings, done in his greatest day, is so ethereal, so imaginative, so gorgeous in colour, as what I then beheld. I seemed to be lifted from the earth and to be looking into Heaven. What I once said to you, as I witnessed the scene five and twenty years ago, all came back at this most affecting and sublime sight (Letters 12: 75). Dickens was certainly not the only English tourist to be awed by Niagara Falls. In fact, his visit there, and even his mystical effusions about it, could be considered customary and necessary elements of any narrative of travels through America and Canada. As Amanda Claybaugh states in The Novel of Purpose: Literature and Social Reform in the Anglo-American World, â€Å"the conventional itinerary included the †¦ [main] natural sites (the Mississippi River, the prairies of the West, and above all else, Niagara Falls)† (71-2). In Domestic Manners of the Americans (1832), Frances Trollope refers to all the chief elements of the sublime in her description of Niagara Falls, repeatedly expressing that they defy description and that in viewing them â€Å"wonder, terror, and delight† overwhelmed her (337). â€Å"I wept with a strange mixture of pleasure and of pain,† she writes, â€Å"and certainly was, for some time, too violently affected†¦. to be capable of much pleasure; but when this emotion of the senses subsided †¦ my enjoyment was very great indeed.† She notes the mystical effect of the falls as well: â€Å"It has to me something beyond its vastness,† over which â€Å"a shadowy mystery hangs,† which â€Å"neither the eye nor even the imagination can penetrate† (337). Harriet Martineau visited the falls in 1834 and, like Trollope and Dickens, associated them with the mystical: â€Å"to offer an idea of Niagara by writing of hues and dimensions is much like representing the kingdom of  Heaven by images of jasper and topazes† (96). On her second visit to the falls months later, Martineau descended the stairs behind the falls and wrote: From the moment that I perceived that we were actually behind the cataract, and not in a mere cloud of spray, the enjoyment was intense. I not only saw the watery curtain before me like tempest-driven snow, but by momentary glances could see the crystal roof of this most wonderful of Nature’s palaces (104). Perhaps the oddest narrative of a British visit to Niagara Falls comes from Captain Frederick Marryat, who wrote about his 1837 trip to the falls in his Diary in America, published in 1839: As I stood on the brink above the falls, continuing for a considerable time to watch the great mass of water tumbling, dancing, capering, and rushing wildly along †¦ I could not help wishing that I too had been made of such stuff as would have enabled me to have joined it; with it to have rushed innocuously down the precipice; to have rolled uninjured into the deep unfathomable gulf below (111). The longer he stood there the more the urge to jump into the falls rose in him until he had to pull himself away, an experience that testifies to the terror that Burke argued was inherent in the sublime, a terror that Trollope experienced but Dickens denied feeling in viewing the falls. As it turns out, Marryat might have done himself a favor to jump, for as Jules Zanger, the editor of his diary, asserts, â€Å"of all the literary lions who have made their progress through †¦ America †¦ the most tactless and blundering was Captain Frederick Marryat.† Zanger points out that Marryat began his journey as an â€Å"honored guest,† but before he concluded his trip, â€Å"he had been threatened by a lynch mob, had watched his books burned in public bonfires, and †¦ had seen himself hung in effigy [twice] by angry crowds† (9). He had a habit, it seems, of regularly saying the wrong thing, a habit that at times carries over into his travel narrative, as in a bizarre passage where he wishes he could transport Niagara Falls to Italy and pour them down Mount Vesuvius and thereby â€Å"create the largest steamboiler that ever entered into the imagination of man† (111). Later, Marryat counters the oddness of this image with the more conventional statement that the voice of Niagara was the  voice of the Almighty, and that a Presbyterian minister he heard nearby should have preached on its message instead of on the uninspiring and hackneyed subject of temperance (112). These were the American journeys and narratives most in the British public eye when Dickens embarked on his trip to North America. In this context, his ecstatic description of the falls may seem rather ordinary. Romanticism was still the dominant cultural influence at the time, so one was expected to have Romantic effusions about iconic Romantic scenes. (1) But while the journey to the falls may have become customary, and the experiences of the sublime similar in most narratives, yet the effect was still profound for Dickens, as one can see particularly in the letters where he goes beyond the vague, mystical language often associated with the sublime and makes specific personal connections with the falls. As I have pointed out above, the falls made Dickens think almost immediately of the cycle of death and resurrection with the falls descending into the abyss and rising again in spray. But even more specifically they reminded him of his beloved sister-in-law Mary who had died suddenly seven years earlier. As he wrote to Forster from Niagara, â€Å"what would I give if the dear girl whose ashes lie in Kensal-green, had lived to come so far along with us.† But then he takes back the wish because he decides that she must have â€Å"been here many times, I doubt not, since her sweet face faded from my earthly sight† (Letters 3: 211). His associating the falls with Mary’s death and her continuing spiritual presence on earth allows Dickens to make the falls his own, at least in part. They become linked to a personal family tragedy and offer a consolation for her loss. But Dickens makes another personal connection with the falls. In letters written from Niagara, he repeatedly adds to the date the phrase â€Å"Niagara Falls (Upon the English Side)† with â€Å"English† underscored with as many as ten dashes. He only does this in letters to his English friends, of course–including Forster, Mitton and Beard, as if to express a sense of relief. After Dickens’s well-known disappointments with Americans–his exasperation with their greed, their spitting, their lack of respect for privacy and copyright laws, not to mention their slavery–topics covered  fully in American Notes and in letters–being among English on English turf must have been a welcome experience. Writing to Forster on 26 April 1842, Dickens mentions that there were two English officers with them as they first approached the falls, and he exclaims â€Å"ah! What gentlemen, what noblemen of nature they seemed,† implying that he had not seen much of their kind in the States (Letters 3: 210). In emphasizing the English side of the falls, Dickens once again seems to imagine a personal connection to something that transcends the personal. He tries to come to terms with the sublimity of the falls, reduce them at least in part to his level, make them part of himself, part of his family story, part of his Englishness. In this way he can own his experience of the falls, anchor it mentally and emotionally and then use it later in his fiction, as he indeed does. His account of the falls in American Notes lacks some of the interest of his descriptions in letters precisely because he leaves out the personal connections he makes in correspondence, no doubt deeming them inappropriate for the public narrative. Having made these personal associations between the falls and the death and spiritual presence of Mary and between the sublime and the English, it is not surprising, then, that Dickens would work the falls and other powerful images of water into his portrayals of death, transformations, and transcendent moments in his subsequent novels. In order to gauge the change we must first look at the imagery Dickens used for such moments in his earlier novels. In the novels Dickens published before visiting Niagara in 1842, he frequently gestured toward transcendence in death scenes and in concluding chapters, but the imagery he used tends to center on sunny little communities, flowers and other greenery, angels, and churches. Consider Mr. Pickwick’s cheery rural community at the end of his tale–not transcendent, perhaps, but in the bond between Pickwick and Sam which â€Å"nothing but death will sever† certainly leaning to the legendary (ch. 57). Or consider the â€Å"gentle light† that Rose Maylie sheds as she stands with Oliver by Agnes’s tomb in Oliver Twist (both characters are suffused with light in Cruikshank’s last illustration). Nicholas Nickleby ends with a summery community of Nicklebys and friends with their children strewing flowers on Smike’s grave–Phiz nicely captures the feeling of summer and sunshine in  his final illustration (Figure 1). As Dickens describes the scene: The grass was green above the dead boy’s grave, and trodden by feet so small and light, that not a daisy drooped its head beneath their pressure. Through all the spring and summer-time, garlands of fresh flowers wreathed by infant hands rested upon the stone, and when the children came to change them lest they should wither and be pleasant to him no longer, their eyes filled with tears, and they spoke low and softly of their poor dead cousin† (ch. 64). Barr, Alan P. â€Å"Mourning Becomes David: Loss and the Victorian Restoration of Young Copperfield.† Dickens Quarterly 24 (June 2007): 63-77. Berard, Jane. Dickens and Landscape Discourse. New York: Peter Lang, 2007. Claybaugh, Amanda. The Novel of Purpose: Literature and Social Reform in the Anglo-American World. Ithaca: Cornell UP, 2007. Dickens, Charles. The Pilgrim Edition of the Letters of Charles Dickens. Vols. 3, 12. Ed. Madeline House, et al. Oxford: Clarendon, 1974-2002. Gerard, Alexander. â€Å"An Essay on Taste.† Intro. Walter J. Hipple. 3rd ed. 1780. Gainesville: U of Florida P, 1963. Marryat, Captain Frederck. Diary in America. Ed. by Jules Zanger. Bloomington: Indiana UP, 1960. Martineau, Harriet. Retrospect of Western Travel. Vol. 1. 1838. New York: Johnson, 1968. Metz, Nancy Aycock. The Companion to Martin Chuzzlewit. Robertsbridge: Helm Information, 2001. Page, Norman. Ed. and Intro. The Old Curiosity Shop. NY: Penguin, 2000. Poole, Adrian. Ed. and Intro. Our Mutual Friend. NY: Penguin, 1997. Slater, Michael. Ed. Dickens’ Journalism. Dent Uniform Edition. Vol. 2. London: J. M. Dent, 1997. Trollope, Frances. Domestic Manners of the Americans. London: Routledge, 1927. NATALIE MCKNIGHT (Boston University) NOTES (1) Jane Berard sees Dickens’s description of the falls simply as customary, but pays scant attention to his descriptions in letters (51). (2) Recent examples include Michelle Allen’s Cleansing the City: Sanitary Geographies in Victorian London, Athens, OH: U of Ohio P, 2007; Leon Litvack’s â€Å"Images of the River in Our Mutual Friend,† Dickens Quarterly 20.1 (2003): 34-55; and Pamela Gilbert’s â€Å"Medical Mapping: The Thames, the Body, and Our Mutual Friend,† in Filth, Dirt, Disgust and Modern Life, ed. by William A. Cohen and Ryan Johnson, Minneapolis: U of Minnesota P, 2005, 78-102. (3) â€Å"Transmutation of Species,† AYR (9 March 1861), 519-21. Dickens was aware of other theories related to evolution as well, and refers to â€Å"the Monboddo doctrine †¦ of the human race having once been monkeys† in the first chapter of Martin Chuzzlewit (Metz 37-9) and to Robert Chambers’s Vestiges (1844) in a review of Robert Hunt’s Poetry of Science published in The Examiner in 1848 (Slater 2: 129-34). In addition, Household Words included F. T. Buckland’s â€Å"Old Bones,† (24 Sept. 1853) and Henry Morley’s â€Å"Our Phantom Ship on an Antediluvian Cruise† (16 Aug. 1851). See also Natalie McKnight, â€Å"Dickens and Darwin: A Rhetoric of Pets,† The Dickensian 102 (2006), 131-43. COPYRIGHT 2009 Dickens Society of America No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder. Copyright 2009 Gale, Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. Please bookmark with social media, your votes are noticed and appreciated:

Biography of Christine de Pizan, Medieval Writer

Christine de Pizan (1364 to 1430), born in Venice, Italy, was an Italian writer and political and moral thinker during the late medieval period. She became a prominent writer at the French court during the reign of Charles VI, writing on literature, morals, and politics, among other topics. She  was noted for her unusually outspoken defense of women. Her writings remained influential and oft-printed through the 16th  century, and her work returned to prominence during the mid-20th  century. Fast Facts: Christine de Pizan Known For: Early feminist thinker and influential writer in the royal court of Charles VI of FranceBorn: 1364 in Venice, ItalyDied: 1430 in Poissy, FrancePublished Works: The Book of the City of Ladies, The Treasure of the City of LadiesFamous Quote:  Ã¢â‚¬Å"The man or the woman in whom resides greater virtue is the higher; neither the loftiness nor the lowliness of a person lies in the body according to the sex but in the perfection of conduct and virtues.†Ã‚  (from  The Book of the City of Ladies) Early Life Pizan was born in Venice to Tommaso di Benvenuto da Pizzano, later known by the Gallicized moniker Thomas de Pizan, in reference to the family’s origins in the town of Pizzano. Thomas was a physician, astrologer, and politician in Venice, then a republic in its own right, and accepted a posting to the French court of Charles V in 1368. His family accompanied him there. Unlike many of her contemporaries, Pizan was well educated from a young age, in large part thanks to her father, who encouraged her learning and provided access to an extensive library. The French court was highly intellectual, and Pizan absorbed it all. Wed and Widowed At the age of fifteen, Pizan  married Etienne du Castel, a court secretary. The marriage was, by all accounts, a happy one. The pair were close in age, and the marriage produced three children in ten years. Etienne encouraged Pizans intellectual and creative pursuits as well. Pizans father Thomas died in 1386, with some debts outstanding. Since Thomas had been the royal favorite, the family’s fortunes were not as bright after his death. In 1389, tragedy struck again. Etienne fell ill and died, most likely from the plague, leaving Pizan a widow with three young children. With no surviving male relatives, Pizan was left as the sole supporter of her children and her mother (and a niece, according to some sources). When she attempted to claim the salary still owed to her late husband, she was forced to engage in legal battles to get what was owed. Writer at Court The royal courts of England and Milan both expressed interest in Pizans presence, but her loyalty remained with the court where she had spent nearly her entire life. The natural decision might have been to remarry, but Pizan made the decision to not seek a second husband among the men at court. Instead, she turned to her considerable writing skill as a means to support her family. At first, Pizans  output mainly consisted of love poetry in the favored styles of the era. Several of the ballads were expressions of grief over Etienne’s passing, again highlighting the genuine affection of their marriage. Pizan was highly involved in the production of her books, and her skillful poetry and embrace of Christian morals caught the eyes of many of the wealthy, titled courtiers. Writing romantic ballads was also a crucial means of gaining patrons, given the popularity of the form. As time passed, she gained many patrons, including Louis I, Duke of Orleans, Phillip, Duke of Burgundy, Marie of Berry, and even an English earl, the Earl of Salisbury. Due to her ability to utilize these powerful patrons, Pizan  was able to navigate a time of major turmoil in the French court during the reign of Charles VI, who earned the moniker â€Å"the Mad† due to his bouts of mental illness that rendered him unfit to rule for stretches of time. Pizan also wrote many of her works for and about the French royal family. In 1404, her biography of Charles V was published, and she often dedicated pieces of writing to the royals. A 1402 work was dedicated to Queen Isabeau (Charles VI’s wife) and compared the queen to the historical queen Blanche of Castile. Literary Quarrel Pizans poetry was clearly influenced by her own experience of losing her husband and being left to fend for herself, but some poems had an unusual tone that set her apart. One poem describes a fictionalized Pizan being touched by the personification of Fortune and â€Å"changed† into a male, a literary depiction of her struggles to be her family’s breadwinner and fulfill a â€Å"male† role. This was only the start of Pizans writings on gender. In 1402, Pizan  gained attention as the instigator of a famous literary debate, the â€Å"Querelle du Roman de la Rose† or the â€Å"Quarrel of the Romance of the Rose.† The debate centered on the Romance of the Rose, written by Jean de Meun, and its harsh, misogynistic depictions of women. Pizans writings defended women from these portrayals, using her extensive knowledge of literature and rhetoric to debate at a scholarly level. The Book of the City of Ladies The work for which Pizan is best known is The Book of the City of Ladies (Le Livre de la cità © des dames). In this work and its companion, The Treasure of the City of Ladies, Pizan  created an extensive allegory in defense of women, marking her as one of the earliest Western feminist authors. The central idea of the work is the creation of a great metaphorical city, constructed by and for heroic, virtuous women throughout history. In the book, Pizans  fictionalized self has a lengthy dialogue with three ladies who are the personifications of great virtues: Reason, Rectitude, and Justice. Her rhetoric is designed to critique the oppression of women and the vulgar, misogynistic attitudes of male writers of the day. It included profiles and â€Å"examples† drawn from great women of history, as well as logical arguments against oppression and sexism. Additionally, the book exhorts women of all stations to cultivate their skills and to live well. Even in the production of her book, Pizan advanced the cause of women. The Book of the City of Ladies was produced as an illuminated manuscript, which Pizan herself oversaw. Only skilled women were employed to produce it. Political Writings During Pizans  life, the French court was in considerable turmoil, with various factions constantly vying for power and the king incapacitated much of the time. Pizans writings urged unity against a common enemy (the English, with whom the French were fighting the Hundred Years’ War) rather than civil war. Unfortunately, civil war broke out around 1407. In 1410, Pizan  published a treatise on warfare and chivalry, in which she discussed the concepts of just war, treatment of troops and prisoners, and more. Her work was balanced for her time, adhering to the contemporary concept of war as divinely ordained justice but also critiquing the cruelties and crimes committed in wartime. As her connection to the royal family remained intact, Pizan  also published The Book of Peace, her final major work, in 1413. The manuscript was dedicated to the young dauphin, Louis of Guyenne, and was filled with advice on how to govern well. In her writing, Pizan advocated against civil war and advised the prince to set an example for his subjects by being wise, just, honorable, honest, and available to his people. Later Life and Death After the French defeat at Agincourt in 1415, Pizan  stepped away from court and retired to a convent. Her writing ceased, although in 1429, she wrote a paean to Joan of Arc, the only such French-language work written in Joan’s lifetime. Christine de Pizan died at the convent in Poissy, France in 1430 at the age of 66. Legacy Christine de Pizan was one of the earliest feminist writers, defending women and placing value on the perspectives of women. Her works criticized the misogyny found in classical romances and were seen as vindications of women. After her death,  The Book of the City of Ladies remained in print, and her political writings continued to circulate as well. Later scholars, most notably Simone de Beauvoir, brought Pizans works back to prominence in the twentieth century, studying her as one of the earliest instances of women who wrote in defense of other women. Sources Brown-Grant, Rosalind. Christine de Pizan and the Moral Defence of Women. Cambridge University Press, 1999.â€Å"Christine de Pisan.† Brooklyn Museum, https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/eascfa/dinner_party/place_settings/christine_de_pisanâ€Å"Christine de Pizan Biography.† Biography, https://www.biography.com/people/christine-de-pisan-9247589Lunsford, Andrea A., editor. Reclaiming Rhetorica: Women and in the Rhetorical Tradition.  University of Pittsburgh Press, 1995.Porath, Jason. Rejected Princesses: Tales of History’s Boldest Heroines, Hellions, and Heretics. New York: Dey Street Books, 2016.