The Synesthesia free essay sample

One in every one hundred thousand people is diagnosed with synesthesia. Many people don’t even know what this mental illness is. If they did there would probably be more cases of people coming out telling the world what they have. What is synesthesia? Well, it’s defined as â€Å"senses coming together.† It pretty much means that their senses are mixed instead of separated. In a synesthete’s brain when someone hears a sound, he or she immediately sees a color or shape in his or her â€Å"minds eye.† Synesthesia is involuntary but elicited. It is also irrepressible, which means they don’t have to trigger the secondary sensory experience consciously. They cannot control it. There are about thirty-five different subtypes such as taste hearing, sound touch and so on. The most common is color-graphemic, where letters and numbers, produce certain colors, simple patterns, and color-auditory. Color-auditory includes voices, music, and random noise pro duce colors, textures, and shapes. We will write a custom essay sample on The Synesthesia or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page What are synesthetes like? Well, most of them do not even know they have something wrong. They believe everyone experiences the same thing they are. They don’t recognize they are different until they’re older. Most synesthetes are women roughly two to one. Most of them have a relative that are also synesthetic, which makes us believe that it could be inherited. They are usually very artistic and creative. They also have a very good memory. Many people think that it is very confusing for them walking around constantly seeing shapes, colors, and patterns. The truth is it’s not. They often enjoy their synesthesia. They adapt to it just like we do. See, we think they might have a problem but, they don’t understand how we can learn without what they see. So the feeling is mutual. The only time they are bothered by it is when a stimulus produces synesthetic experience they don’t like. Such as with color-graphemic they might not like a letter because an u gly color is associated with it. It would also be hard because for a color-graphemic it might confuse them if a really boring person has a vibrant name. Synesthesia is a very uncommon disorder but also kind of unique. I would like to vision things like a synesthete just to see what it would be like. How could you be sad or mad all the time while seeing beautiful colors, shapes, and patterns everywhere? That also goes both ways, how could u be happy seeing sad colors, shapes, and patterns. Synesthesia has its ups and downs. Hopefully we do more research on this topic because it is very extraordinary.

Centrosaurus - Facts and Figures

Centrosaurus - Facts and Figures Name: Centrosaurus (Greek for pointed lizard); pronounced SEN-tro-SORE-us Habitat: Woodlands of western North America Historical Period: Late Cretaceous (75 million years ago) Size and Weight: About 20 feet long and three tons Diet: Plants Distinguishing Characteristics: Single, long horn on end of snout; moderate size; large frill over head About Centrosaurus It was probably too dumb to notice the difference, but Centrosaurus was definitely lacking when it came to defensive armament: this ceratopsian possessed only a single long horn on the end of its snout, compared to three for Triceratops (one on its snout and two over its eyes) and five (more or less, depending on how youre counting) for Pentaceratops. Like others of its breed, Centrosaurus horn and large frill probably served dual purposes: the frill as a sexual display and (possibly) a way to dissipate heat, and the horn to head-butt other Centrosaurus adults during mating season and intimidate hungry raptors and tyrannosaurs. Centrosaurus is known by literally thousands of fossil remains, making it one of the worlds best-attested ceratopsians. The first, isolated remains were discovered by Lawrence Lambe in Canadas Alberta province; later, nearby, researchers discovered two vast Centrosaurus bonebeds, containing thousands of individuals of all growth stages (newborns, juveniles, and adults) and extending for hundreds of feet. The most likely explanation is that these herds of migrating Centrosaurus were drowned by flash floods, not an unusual fate for dinosaurs during the late Cretaceous period, or that they simply perished of thirst while gathered around a dry water hole. (Some of these Centrosaurus bonebeds are interlaced with Styracosaurus fossils, a possible hint that this even more ornately decorated ceratopsian was in the process of displacing Centrosaurus 75 million years ago.) Recently, paleontologists announced a pair of new North American ceratopsians that seem to have been closely related to Centrosaurus, Diabloceratops and Medusaceratopsboth of which sported their own unique horn/frill combinations reminiscent of their more famous cousin (hence their classification as centrosaurine rather than chasmosaurine ceratopsians, albeit ones with very Triceratops-like characteristics as well). Given the profusion of ceratopsians discovered in North America over the last few years, it may be the case that the evolutionary relationships of Centrosaurus and its nearly indistinguishable cousins have yet to be fully sorted out.

Willa Cather's short story Paul's Case Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Willa Cather's short story Paul's Case - Essay Example His work as an usher takes him away from his drab surroundings and into another world where the music reveals the "potent spirit within him". Paul's world is built upon untruths. Paul does not care to join in the world of music and drama; he is satisfied just to live vicariously through its proximity. Paul feasts off the efforts of others. For Paul the whole world is all lies, and the theater is one more of Paul's illusions. For Paul it was easy and necessary for overcoming the difficult task of effort. The theater is not only his escape from school, but also from Cordelia Street. Cordelia Street is the symbol of the "colorless mass of everyday existence". Paul can not subscribe to the middle class and could never be a clerk. He would never become one of the "rivets in the machine" that his father had. Paul wanted to be at the top "though he had no mind for the cash-boy stage". Paul needs more. Paul immerses himself in the drama of the theater with fanatical tales of his exaggerated importance. Fearing that Paul had wandered too far from the center of normality, his father demands that he be put to work. Alienated from school by the strict teachers, from home by his father's dismal existence and banished from the theater Paul creates a new illusion.

Investor Psychology and Return Predictability Essay

Investor Psychology and Return Predictability - Essay Example To do so, we start with a traditional constant relative risk aversion utility function. This type of utility function is a standard criterion for choices under uncertainty. This function is expanded in a Taylor approximation up to the fourth order. The first two moments correspond to mean and variance. The third and fourth moment correspond to a directional measure of extreme events and to a symmetric measure respectively. A negative third moment indicates that there are more extreme negative realizations than there are positive ones. The fourth moment measures how the tails of the return distribution compare with the tails of the Gaussian distribution. From a technical point of view, in our paper, a numerical optimization takes place where the allocation involves higher moments. More pronounced results expected in the case one consider portfolios of individual stocks. Our findings are the following: a) When an investor may allocate his wealth to the indices and to the risk-free asset, then the weights corresponding to the risky assets are essentially unaffected by the introduction of a concern for the third or fourth moments. c) As the third moment comes to play a role, Asia (except Japan) gets less weighted because it contains large negative returns, whereas the importance of Japan is increased. The strong weighting of Japan comes from the fact that the Japanese returns contain several very large positive outliers generating a positive third moment. The implication of this research is that the traditional utility functions or expansions thereof may not sufficiently weigh realizations of extreme nature. This brings up the question how to adapt a utility function so that more weight is given to extreme realizations. A further question is how the allocation would change in a conditional setting, or with individual stocks rather than with portfolios, since in such circumstances, one may expect that higher moments take larger values than in the present setting. These questions are left for future research. Abstract Investment strategy is the first issue that investors should consider. At the outset, investing is an act of faith, a willingness to postpone present consumption and save for the future. Investing for the long term is central to the achievement of optimal returns by investors. Unfortunately, the principle of investing for the long term-eschewing funds with high turnover portfolios and holding shares in soundly managed funds as investments for a lifetime- is honoured more in the breach than in the observance by most mutual fund managers and shareholders. This proposition for investor's psychology affect the return predictability can be shown to be precisely true in several popular mathematical models of the portfolio decision. If returns are independent over time, then the mean and variance of continuously compounded returns rises in proportion to the horizon: The

Bethany hamilton Essay Example for Free

Bethany hamilton Essay My name, Bethany Hamilton, may not ring a bell, but I am known as the girl who never gave up. I survived the unthinkable. I want to make a difference in peoples lives by sharing my story, so here it goes. Every morning I hit the beach with my friends. Halloween is usually the time to go trick-or-treating, but for me it was the time to catch a perfect wave. So at sunrise I was already at Tunnel Beach, feeling as though my veins were filled with salt water. The water was crystal clear and very calm. I was relaxing on my board with my left arm dangling in the water as I waited for the next big wave. My friends were floating not too far away. All of them were looking out to sea. Out of nowhere, came a giant tiger shark, and all I saw was a flash of grey. All I felt was a lot of pressure and a couple of fast tugs. It was all over in seconds! Thats all it took for the 15 foot tiger shark to bite my left arm off near my shoulder. I waited in shock as all the water turned bright red. I said in a loud but not panicky voice l Just got attacked by a shark. After the attack, I kept saying Get to the beach. Get to the beach. My arm was bleeding badly, but that didnt prevent e from praying. They tied a shirt around my stub as a tourniquet. As I was rushed to the hospital, I remember the paramedics guy saying, God will never leave you, nor forsake you. He was right. At the hospital, surgeons cleared out of the operating room so I could be rushed in. They gave me blood and cleaned out my terrible wound. I stayed in the hospital for about a week after the accident, because I needed time to heal and regain my strength. My family was with me constantly, but honestly I Just wanted to go surfing. Many visitors came to see me, and all I saw was pity on their faces. After I was out of the hospital, I discovered that my life had changed dramatically. Everyday tasks suddenly became difficult. I knew I needed to forget about surfing, but I couldnt. The attack hadnt lessened my love for surfing, and I wasnt ready to give up. Less than a month later, I was back on my surf board, but paddling with only one arm was not easy. Standing up on the board was equally tough. Catching my first wave after the accident, made everything worthwhile. I rode the wave all the way to the beach, and after that, I had tears of happiness running down my face. A lot of people think soul surfers are Just people who surf and dont compete, but I think its someone who Just loves surfing for what it is, never gives up, and always sticks with the ocean. I still dream of surfing victories, but now IVe got other dreams, too. I want to make a difference in peoples lives. I want to help others deal with pain and loss. Most importantly, I want to encourage people to follow their dreams, no matter how hard it seems. All I know is that my life will include plenty of surfing. IVe been surfing since I was five, and Ill be surfing until however ling I can. bethany hamilton By hfeuch

Funeral Homes Studies: Overcharging

Funeral Homes Studies: Overcharging Running head: FUNERAL HOMES Abstract The overcharging of consumers by funeral homes was investigated to prove to consumers that they are being overcharged, and to show them some ways to avoid being overcharged. The goal was to show precisely when the funeral homes are taking advantage of the consumer, and to show that consumers need to be aware that funeral homes have more than one way of taking advantage of them and overcharging them in large amounts. The effects of this severe problem were determined by looking over a law that has been put into place to subdue the crime, ways the crime is committed, and also an interview that was conducted to gather information on one of many alternatives to using the traditional funeral service. There are many alternatives to the traditional funeral; most people just dont know where to learn about them. Funeral Homes: The Overcharging For Services and Distrust Behind It It is not easy to lose a loved one. In addition, it is not always easy for a person to find out how much it is going to cost them and their family to give their loved one the proper burial they deserve. During the time of grieving, the family of the deceased is not really concerned with the costs of the funeral, for all they are looking for is a proper burial or funeral ceremony for their loved one. The cost of a typical funeral in the United States in 1983 was around $2,500.00 (Darmstadter, 1983). Solomon (n.d.) states that â€Å"the average funeral in the United States costs $6,500, according to the National Funeral Directors Association. The true sum can easily reach $10,000 once a burial plot, flowers and other costs are included, the AARP says.† This price is from around 2004; consumers need to be aware that the prices are steadily rising, and that if they dont watch out for those funeral homes that try to get more money out of them, they could end up losing thousands mor e dollars than is necessary to spend on a funeral service. The crime of funeral homes taking advantage of consumers has been around for many years, and in 1984 The Funeral Rule was put into place in order to put a stop to it. â€Å"On September 24, 1982, the FTC published a ruling known in the Federal Register as the Funeral Rule† (Schwartz, Jolson, Lee, 1986). â€Å"Under the Rule, the FTC mandates that funeral homes allow customers to buy only those things they choose† (Mark, n.d.). Many people do not realize that during these times of vulnerability, the funeral home they have trusted the care of their loved one with, could be taking advantage of them; overcharging them for already expensive services. Funeral homes are overcharging consumers while they are grieving for the loss of a loved one. Funeral homes are overcharging consumers for their services. They are taking advantage of them while they are most vulnerable in an emotionally distraught state as they are preoccupied in grieving for the loss of a loved one, and when they are in a hurry to plan a funeral for a sudden death. Funeral homes have several ways of overcharging consumers, and two of the most prominent ways they do this is by teaming up with hospice care centers and by quoting the wrong prices if they will even quote them at all. Discussion Taking advantage of vulnerability. The funeral homes of America take advantage of the bereaved when they are most vulnerable. One of the most common times that a funeral home will take advantage of the bereaved is when they are in the middle of grieving, trying to set up a funeral while they are emotionally distraught. Schlozman and La Grand (1985) state that â€Å"death in a family is a personal, emotional experience that can have long term emotional and physical consequences for survivors (cited in Butler, 2007, p. 95). Funeral directors look for the best chance that they can get to get a grieving person to agree to buy something or to set up an expensive funeral; while the bereaved are emotionally distraught, which is mostly in the beginning of the funeral planning process, is when this happens the most. Many funeral directors will say that funeral homes are not taking advantage of consumers when they are â€Å"most vulnerable,† they are simply taking the necessary steps to make sure that the consumer gets what they need and what they ask for so as to get the funeral done in the most complete way possible. When a consumer is preoccupied in grieving for the loss of a loved one, they may be emotionally distraught and kind of out of their norm, however this does not mean that all funeral directors are low enough to take advantage of consumers. Most funeral directors deal with so many emotional people everyday they are at their workplace, that most of them know what it is like for a person to fe el the way they do therefore they will not go out of their way to take advantage of them for that little bit of extra money. As one can see, this is clearly not the case. Funeral homes overcharge consumers while they are grieving for the loss of a loved one at times when they are most vulnerable, and with pre-planning, this can be partly eliminated. The funeral homes of America also take advantage of the bereaved when they are in a hurry to get the funeral set up. There is not much time between when a person passes away, and the time the funeral needs to be set up and followed through with. â€Å"Most of the major decisions regarding funeral arrangements must be made within 24-48 hours (Sommer, Nelson, and Hoyt, 1985). Many people do not know that their loved one is going to pass on when they do, so they are in a frantic hurry to get the funeral set up and that is what gets them into such a bind with the funeral homes taking advantage of and overcharging them. One thing that a person who is in a hurry to set up a funeral typically does is calls funeral homes in their area asking for price quotes. When a person uses the phone to contact funeral homes about prices, they can â€Å"compare prices among funeral providers,† this may eventually help them to decide which funeral home and arrangement they would like to consider (USA Funeral Homes Online, 1999). Also, when a person is in a hurry to set up a funeral for a loved one, it is advised that they gather â€Å"price lists† from some of the funeral homes in their area â€Å"to compare pricing and options† (Wilke, 2005). Mark (n.d.) states that â€Å"the funeral rule also requires that GPLs (â€Å"General Price Lists†) list the prices of up to 16 items if they are services that the funeral home offers. . . .† If a person were to go around to funeral homes in their area, a general price list is a good tool that the funeral homes are required to give them, so t hey know the prices, thus promoting smart decision making, and the possibility of preventing being overcharged and taken advantage of. It is often though that when a consumer has a sudden death in the family and they are in a hurry to plan a funeral, most funeral directors are not going out of their way to overcharge them to get that little bit of extra money. They may indeed be overcharging them; however, they may simply be charging the prices they do because they want to be sure to get the consumer everything that they need since the process is so hurried in this type of situation. These thoughts are obviously not relevant because, as one can see, if the funeral directors were as caring as they make them seem, they would give any unused money back to the consumer when the funeral is all said and done. Shopping around for the best priced funeral home, and ignoring any suggestions given by hospice care centers, could be one of the most important ways for a consumer to greatly decrease the chance of being overcharged. Funeral homes overcharge consumers while they are grieving for the loss of a loved one, at times whe n they are in a hurry to plan a funeral for a sudden death, and with pre-planning and smart decision making, this can be partly eliminated. Teaming up with hospice care centers. Consumers need to be aware that funeral homes have different ways of overcharging them. One of the main ways this happens is when funeral homes go together with hospice care centers. The Hospice Patients Alliance (n.d.) states that: One of the major scams committed by such rogue hospices is to refer the family to one particular funeral home, if they havent made arrangements beforehand with another funeral home. The funeral home then charges their very highest rates for funeral home services and the family has no idea that they have been scammed, because they trust the â€Å"compassionate† hospice people. If individuals go to that funeral home directly inquiring about charges for funeral services, they get offered discounted rates, but hospice referrals get charged the highest rates. When funeral homes team up with hospice care centers, they can overcharge consumers large amounts of money, and they can do it very discreetly. Many people would not suspect a hospice care center to refer them to a high priced funeral home; this is why consumers need to be aware that this could happen. Consumers need to be aware that shopping around for a funeral home with the best prices is one of the best things they can do to prevent being overcharged, even if a hospice care center that their family trusts recommends a funeral home, or they are pressed with time and any other issue that may come their way. The Hospice Patients Alliance (n.d.) states that â€Å"you do not have to use the funeral home â€Å"recommended† by a hospice. They should not be recommending any funeral homes that is a decision for you to make, not the hospice.† Many funeral directors will say that funeral homes may indeed be teaming up with hospice care centers in being sure that the funeral ho me will have a steady flow of business on account of the recommendations given by the hospice care centers; but this does not mean that they are doing it to overcharge the consumers. They may in fact be doing this simply to help the family eliminate the hassle of finding a funeral home and going through the process of looking for price quotes, etc. This is clearly not the case as one can see, simply because if funeral directors were as caring as they seem, they would not be trying to get consumers away from looking for price quotes and things like that, they would help them find the funeral home they are looking for, or be sure to accommodate their needs as best they can. Also, if a funeral home has that much trouble getting business, something needs to be done, and that funeral home should probably be looked at as a fraud. Funeral homes overcharge consumers while they are grieving for the loss of a loved one. Many people do not realize that it may not only be the funeral home that is in on the scam; hospice care centers play a major role in this deception of the consumers also. Quoting the wrong prices. Another quite common way that funeral homes overcharge consumers is by quoting the wrong prices over the phone, or not quoting any at all. There are many people that are pressed for time when it comes down to planning a funeral, and most of them resort to calling funeral homes to inquire about prices. What many people do not realize, is that the funeral homes may not be giving them the right price quote, and many of them quickly find out that the funeral home may not give them a price quote at all. The reason that some funeral homes do not give any price quotes at all, would be so they could adjust the prices accordingly to each and every funeral they conduct. â€Å"The funeral home is required to give you a free copy of the price list when you visit. Its also required to tell you its prices over the phone. If a funeral director refuses to do so, suggesting instead that you come in for an appointment, That should be a warning sign, Slocum says† (Block, 2006). Many consumers do not know this important piece of information. The laws that regulate the funeral homes of America are not posted around the nation as are the everyday laws that the people of America are required to follow. This is why, when shopping around for a well priced funeral home; consumers need to be aware of the laws so as to catch the hints that are thrown at them. The hints that should make them think that perhaps they should not trust some funeral homes that they have come in contact with. When a person that is frantically trying to set up a funeral calls a funeral home, they do not expect to be taken advantage of and overcharged because most Americans would agree that this is a very serious business, and that most every funeral home should be trustworthy. However, that is not the case. When consumers are calling funeral homes over the phone, they need to be aware of the potential dangers that it entails. Common thought of consumers is that when a consumer contacts a funeral home over the phone seeking quotes on prices for their services, the funeral directors may quote the wrong prices; this does not mean that is what will be charged. Many funeral directors care enough to provide the consumers only with what they need or would like to have for the funeral, so the prices they quote may only be a ball-park figure for the general funeral service. When a funeral home does not quote a price at all, this may be to eliminate the problem of quoting the wrong prices, or even to eliminate competition between them and other funeral homes. Consumers may be frustrated by this, but in all reality this may be something that could help them because if they went with a funeral home that does not quote a price, they may actually end up spending less money than they would at a funeral home that quoted a price that was too high. The thoughts are clearly irrelevant because if funeral homes were quoting ball-park figures, they would most likely state that the prices they are giving are ball park. Also, if a funeral home does not quote a price at all and others do, it is most obvious that they are planning on giving prices when the funeral is over with so as to inflate the prices and not be detected. Funeral homes overcharge consumers while they are grieving for the loss of a loved one. If consumers are aware of the potential dangers of calling funeral homes for price quotes, and the laws that are supposed to regulate them, this could greatly decrease the risk of being overcharged. Ways to avoid being overcharged. There are many things that can be done for a person to prevent being overcharged when they are working with a funeral home to set up a funeral. The most prominent of all alternatives is full body organ donation, which many people participate in. As Carol Wright (personal communication, February 29, 2008) described, full body organ donation is when a person chooses to donate their entire body to an organization of choice before they die. When they die, the organization will pick up their body from wherever they are, and ship them to where the body will be used. After the organization is done using the body for all intents and purposes, they cremate it and send the remains to a family member for a $25.00 shipping fee. Another well-known alternative to being overcharged by a funeral is by using traditional organ donation. This will give the family time to plan the funeral as the hospital or some other form of medical personnel removes the organ(s) the deceased has agreed to donate after death, thus slimming the possibility of being overcharged by the funeral home because it gives the family time to look around and find the best prices available to them. One good thing about organ donation is that there have been, for the families of people who donate while they are alive and after they have died, some â€Å"financial and health care-related reimbursement incentives widely debated† (Boulware, Troll, Wang, Powe, 2006). Many people dont realize that without these alternatives, nearly every person in the United States would be taken advantage of at some time or another by a funeral home. The Federal Trade Commission (2000) stated that: To relieve their families of some of these decisions, an increasing number of people are planning their own funerals, designating their own funeral preferences, and sometimes even paying for them in advance. They see funeral planning as an extension of will and estate planning. If someone in a family dies, and there has been no planning for a funeral whatsoever, the family members that are to do the planning for the funeral are left in a bind. If a person plans their own funeral, the surviving family is left with â€Å"the precedent, information and moral support needed to get the type of service it wants† (Bender, 1974). To eliminate funeral homes taking advantage of and overcharging the bereaved, as The Federal Trade Commissions and Bender state, a person should think about planning their own funeral so that it is set in stone, and the surviving family has much less of a chance of being pressured into meaningless spending while they are most vulnerable. Funeral homes are overcharging consumers while they are grieving for the loss of a loved one. Review Major issues. There have been two major issues discussed in this writing about how funeral homes overcharge consumers; the first being that many funeral homes take advantage of consumers when they are most vulnerable. There were two times in which this happens quite often that were discussed here. The first is when consumers are tied up in grieving and pre-occupied with the whole funeral planning process, and getting things organized and followed through with. The second is when the consumer is pressed for time trying to plan a sudden funeral, and the funeral home takes this hurried process to their advantage. The second major issue discussed is that consumers need to be aware that funeral homes have different ways of overcharging them. There were two of the most common ways discussed here; the first being that funeral homes overcharge by teaming up with hospice care centers, and the second being that the funeral homes either quote the wrong prices over the phone, or in person, or they simply do not give prices at all, so as to inflate them accordingly with each and every funeral they conduct. Expenses. The most popular way for consumers to recognize the death of a loved one is to plan for a traditional funeral. Traditional funerals can be very costly, and often times not exactly what the consumer was looking for when it is all said and done. Most people would agree that the traditional funeral is the best way to go about putting a loved one to rest; however, when funeral homes are overcharging for these services that are already overpriced, it is hard for some consumers to follow through with it because of the fear of running out of money before it is all done with. Darmstadter (1983) stated that â€Å"the purchase of a funeral is the third largest single expenditure after a home and a car, that many of us will ever have to make.† Alternatives to the traditional funeral service. There are many alternatives to the traditional funeral service, and the most prominent one of those is organ donation. Full body organ donation and traditional organ donation were discussed earlier in the writing. Full body organ donation is when a person has agreed to donate their body to science after thy have passed on. Traditional organ donation is when a person agrees to allow any of their organs that are useable, to be donated to another human being after they have passed on. These are two of the most prominent ways for consumers to avoid being overcharged by funeral homes; and they are used most commonly by people who did not do any pre-planning for their funeral. What many consumers do not realize is that these options are readily available to anyone who would like to take advantage of them; they are just not advertised since death is such a sheltered topic in the United States. Funeral homes are overcharging consumers while they are grieving for the loss of a loved one. When a consumer is looking around trying to plan a funeral, one of the best ways to avoid being taken advantage of is to be aware of what is happening, and how funeral homes are actually taking advantage of consumers, and what they can do to avoid being take advantage of. A solution to the problem of funeral homes taking advantage of consumers would be for the consumer to shop around for funeral prices and arrangements in advance when anticipating a funeral. Sure, not every person will have time to do this since not all deaths are anticipated; however, this problem will be greatly eliminated if those consumers who are anticipating the death do in fact plan the funeral ahead of time, so as to have the time to go around and shop for the best prices and have the funeral set up the way in which they so desire. Planning a funeral is can be an overwhelming time for the consumer; however, following the simple suggestions that have been given throughout this writing may in fact make the job a lot easier. People need to be aware that in times like these where life just seems like it is not worth living, life will go on. As long as consumers are aware of what is happening out there in the funeral service industry, and they plan for things ahead if possible, problems like these may be wholly eliminated all together.

Cyber Crime in the 21st century Essay

Examine the key features around the growth, development and policing of cyber crime in the 21st century. The internet was first created in the 1960’s, but it only really started to take off and develop in the last 20 years with big websites such as Google (1998) and YouTube (2005). With the internet developing and people knowing more about it, cybercrime then came about and since then it has grown and gotten more dangerous and more extreme. There are several different types of cybercrime for example one is called cyber violence, this includes stalking and harassment, it can also be bullying people online via social networking sites and chat rooms. Cyber obscenity is another type of cyber crime which is sexual including porn sites. Cyber trespass is the crime of hacking sites and cyber theft is also another cybercrime which is credit card fraud as well as the illegal downloading of movies, music, books etc. Computer hackers are very intelligent, initially they started hacking sites simply because they were able to, and they wanted to explore the sites, at the start it was done just for fun. However it didn’t take long for these hackers to realise their potential and what they could actually be doing, soon it then escalated and they became more educated and more confident in hacking. These hackers could now be described as ‘attackers’. There are a few types of attacks that can be made on a computer. One is Denial of Service (DoS) attacks. This is a system set up which sends out a fake email to an individual, it could be to check their password for online banking or make credit card payments etc. It will look very genuine to service users and often many of them fall into the trap. E-Mail bomb is another type of attack that can be made, hundreds of emails are sent to a service in order to shut it down. Another attack is a Trojan Horse, these are attachments sent to people perhaps through email, they may also pop up on the screen. They are very appealing to individuals for example ‘click here for your free iPad’ or ‘you are the 999,999th visitor, click here to claim your free prize’ these are likely to open up viruses. Other types of attacks include Worms, Network Scanning and Key Loggers. Argot is a type of language used for hacking sites and known by all highly skilled hackers. There are three different types of hackers they are; Black hat hacker, white hat hacker and grey hat hacker. 1. Black hat hacker – they are dangerous and highly skilled hackers. They will make it known to people how good they are at hacking and how dangerous they are. 2. White hat hacker – they are usually employed by companies to test the security of their websites. 3. Grey hat hacker – they are very unpredictable and because of this it makes them the most dangerous of all three hackers. Many big website have been hacked such as Yahoo and Play, this is not well known because companies involved do not want the news to be publicised mostly because it would not be good for business as people may think that the website is not safe and will not use it. 22% of the top mobile applications have been hacked. Stalking only became a crime in 1997 and a criminal offence in England and Wales in 2012. Cyber stalking activities include sending repeated, unwanted messages, it could be ordering stuff on behalf of the victims, publicising the victims personal information, spreading false information about the individual and encouraging others to harass the victim. There are 2 types of stalking, direct and indirect. Direct is most common and often starts with an email. Indirect is stalking with the use of billboards and advertisements. In 1999, Ellison carried out research on Working to the Halt of Abuse Online 2000 and found that 39% of stalkers began contact with the victim via email. Only 1% of stalkers didn’t use the internet to first get in contact with the victim. Stalkers are likely to be an ex-partner, however half of all stalkers aren’t known by the victim. There were websites set up for people to stalk there ex partner online, they were called ‘Avengers Den’ and ‘Get Revenge On Your Ex’ they were designed so people could crush their ex-partners self esteem and they could fake SMS them. 87% of cyber stalking victims are young women (Working to the Halt of Abuse Online). Only 50% of cyber stalking activities are reported to the authorities. There are three groups of cyber stalkers; Simple Obsessional, these stalkers have been in a relationship with the victim, the victim has tried to call it of but the stalker refuses to accept it and becomes obsessed with the victim. Love Obsessional, these are stalkers who haven’t had a relationship with the victim but they believe that themselves and the victim have a special connection. Erotomaniac stalkers believe that the victim is deeply in love with them, it can be messages through the media that lead them to believe this. (Melroy, 1996; Mullen et al., 1999) Cybercrime violence has links with terrorism. Cyber terrorism is when an attack is made against a person or property. Cyber terrorism can even be causing a person to be fearful of being harmed. Al Qaeda which is an international terrorist organisation which began in the late 1980’s has been on the internet from the late 1990’s. These Al Qaeda sites may only be on the web for a matter of hours before they are shut down, however they are soon replaced by another one. There were an estimated 5,600 sites as of January 2008 and 900 appearing each year (Weimann 2008). Policing Cyber Crime: Cybercrime has no limits and it can be uncontrollable, there are so many crimes committed online it is hard to keep track of all them. Also it is difficult to see a pattern in cybercrimes. Cybercrime is still developing, there are more viruses every day, it is the fastest moving type of crime. This may be because many people may be committing cyber crime without knowing it, for example people may not know when they are downloading music illegally. Cyber crime is growing and growing. The internet’s characteristics make cybercrime policing very hard, especially hackers, they are so skilled and make sure they do not get caught. There are state funded public police organisations set up to help police cybercrime and put a stop to it. There are also state funded non police and non public policing organisations. ISPs are set up as well as internet users forming groups to protect themselves from cybercrime. There are specialist units in place for policing cybercrime for example Europol which is the European law enforcement agency and Interpol which is the world’s largest policing agency with 109 countries involved. They connect policing communities to make the world safer. Forensic Investigation Units, CID/ Fraud Squad, Computer crime units and child protection units are specialist units that deal with cyber crime. The aim for the future is to bring in some form of legislation that cuts down on cyber crime and also to stop cyber crime from starting in the first place. To conclude the internet has proven to be very dangerous and cyber crime is developing rapidly. People have to be extremely careful while using the internet and not fall into the hackers trap. Warren, P and Streeter, M (2005). Cyber Crime. London: Vision Paperbacks. 1-19, 19-45, 45-72.

Body Culture

Chris Moss describes which sight that will meet you generally, when you meet up at a fitness centre. He thinks the fitness opinion is normalized. Too many men spend their time in the centre, Just because they want to get a great body and to be butchers. It has nothing to do with healthy and exercise. It's only for the sake of the appearance the men does lift weighting. He thinks that some of the only men who seemed to be relaxed at the gym are the fitness Instructors. They give a big part of their life to make other people healthy. The editors of Ms. Magazine got the same opinion In the other text.They focus on women and their breast. They think women and their view of breast implants have got out of hand. Already as kids the girls get feed with the form of the perfect breast by the Barbie mania. They think their breast should stand firm and high and out. Small breasts are now a kind of disease in some women's eyes. The editors mention that women often support the fight against breas t cancer, but a lot of women nevertheless have the breast Implants as their first priority. What many of hem don't know is that the implants can hurt their own body and destroy their health.Comment on the statement * â€Å"There is a link between physical beauty and sex appeal – and popularity, success, and happiness† The statement is probably how many people think. I am sure that many don't want to admit their thoughts, but this Is how many think. Like you could see In the previous texts about body culture, the body means a lot to people. Many look down at the overweight persons and look up to the beauties and the muscular ones. It's an evil circle. It is a very superficial statement. At least one part of the statement is not true.There is not necessarily a link between physical beauty and happiness and is a kind of naive to think such a thing. It is probably easier to get a job when you look good then if you are very ugly. No matter how focused you are on equalizing everybody opportunities you would hire the beautiful above the ugly, if Don applicants Ana ten same accomplishment IT you nave to see ten statement In context with the three other texts, you have to admit that it is statements and renouncement's like this one that helps create the ideals that so many people morbid try to live up to.This statement is very superficial and yet parts of it can be true in some connections. Write a letter * To your headmaster in which you argue for or against this ban Dear headmaster Brian. I do not care about your opinion about the dress code at school. I agree that students and especially girls are wearing overly provocative clothing. I do not think that it is the Job of the school to bring up the students, its Job is only two teach the students. You cannot do a ban, because they wear provocative clothing for leisure and not least when they finish school.I would say I have a better idea. As mentioned earlier, the school's Job to teach students. You can come up with some talking about rapists and miscellaneous criminals. Another idea could also be putting up posters with scare campaigns. I think many students will be affected by it. There will of course be pupils who will not be affected, but they can live their own lives and learn from everyday life and their surroundings. Best regards Simons Holstein.

Policy Framework Development The WritePass Journal

Policy Framework Development Introduction Policy Framework Development ). These core principles have remained the same since the creation of the NHS (Bochel, 2009,p. 332). However, free health care as provided by the NHS proved to be very expensive, with the drug bill increasing from  £13 million to  £41 million within the first two years of its creation. Additionally, as medicine progressed as a science, new technologies and methods increased the cost of the NHS from  £200 million to  £300 million. The provision of free health care for all led to excess demand, adding pressure to the already limited medical resources. The Government was reluctant to cover the excess cost, as it needed to invest in other sectors, such as education. As a result, charges for certain services, such as spectacles and dentures, as well as for prescriptions were implemented (Alcock2008). Neo-liberal ideology and the NHS In 1979, when the NHS had been in place for several decades, a Neo Liberal Government was elected, with little sympathy for the state provision of welfare and the high level of expenditure associated with it (Bochel, 2009, p. 332). Neo-liberal ideology supports the reorganization of the financial and organizational aspects of healthcare services worldwide, based on the argument that the then-existing health systems had failed. According to the recommendation report in 1983, four major problems of health systems globally were: i) misallocation of resources; ii) inequity of accessing care; iii) inefficiency; and iv) exploding costs. It was claimed that government hospitals and clinics were often inefficient, suffering from highly centralised decision-making, wide fluctuations in allocations, and poor motivation of workers (Alcock, 2008). Quality of care was also low, patient waiting times were long and medical consultations were short, misdiagnosis and inappropriate treatment were comm on. Also, the public sector had suffered from serious shortages of medical drugs and equipment, and the purchasing of brand-name pharmaceuticals instead of generic drugs was one of the main reasons for wasting the money spent on health (Navarro, 2007). Private providers were more technically efficient and offer a service that was perceived to be of higher quality. Neo-liberal policies Examples of policies implemented by the Neo-Liberal Government were those based on cost-effectiveness. Cost-effectiveness was presented as the main tool for choosing among possible health interventions for specific health problems. Disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) were used to measure the burden of disease and thus allowing comparisons between specific health problems. Greater reliance on the private sector to deliver clinical services was encouraged, with the expectation that it would raise efficiency. It was suggested that Governments should privatise the healthcare services, by selling the public goods and services, buying the services from the private sector, and supporting the private sector with subsidies. In order to increase efficiency, unnecessary legal and administrative barriers faced by private doctors and pharmacies would need to be removed. Neoliberal policies in healthcare were heavily criticised as they reportedly misdiagnosed the problems and its treatment, leading to a situation worse than it was before the policies were implemented. Shrinking from welfare state to minimum liberal state, retreating from most of the public services and letting the area to irrationality of market dynamics is making pharmaceutical, medical technology, insurance, and law companies the lead actors. It has been claimed that a system providing services according ability-to-pay rather than healthcare need, ensures decreased availability and accessibility to services† (Danis et al., 2008; Janes et al., 2006; Unger et al, 2008). New Labour and the NHS In 1997, the New Labour Government was elected, with a main focus to make a significant improvement on peoples’ health. This was expected to be done by rebuilding the health services within the NHS through â€Å"decentralizing of power and decision-making to local health trusts†. Decentralising was important in order to achieve increased responsiveness to local health needs by widening patient choice, and promoting organizational efficiency. The underlying premise was that decentralization would shorten the bureaucratic hierarchical structure and allow flexibility for local trust managers and health professionals- thus improving organizational performance from the ‘bottom-up’ (Crinson, 2009 :p 139). In 1997 the Government put forward its plans in the White Paper: â€Å"The New NHS: Modern, Dependable† (Blakemore 2003:p 172). The objective was to reduce bureaucratic control from the centre and restore autonomy to health professionals within the NHS. A t the same time, the Government was determined to limit public expenditure by looking at what was already put in place by the previous government. One of the new Labour objectives was to reduce the number of people on the treatment waiting list by offering patients greater choice of provider at the point of inpatient referral. This was put in place from January 2006 onwards, where patients have been offered a choice of at least four hospitals when referred for treatment by their general practitioner. In addition, a new inpatient booking system was put in place, where patients themselves could book their place and time of treatment (Adam, 2006). In 1998, health inequality targets were included in the public service agreements with local government and cross-department machinery was created to follow up a ‘Programme of Actions’, which had the general aim to reduce inequality in terms of life expectancy at birth, and to reduce the infant mortality rate by 10 per cent by 20 10 (Glennerster, 2007 : p 253). Examples of health care policies implemented by New Labour are: Maximum waiting times for in-patient treatment: six months by 2005 and three months by 2008; Patients able to see a primary care practitioner within twenty-four hours and a GP within forty- eight hours; Maximum waiting time of four-hours in emergency rooms; Plans to improve cancer treatment and health inequalities. In addition, in order to improve efficiency, two bodies were set up to give advice and push for more consistent and effective clinical standards in determining the cost of new drugs and procedures. This was the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) (Glennerster,2007 : p 250). However, as argued by Peckham and colleagues (year?), the decentralization of the NHS had mixed results. They note that the process of decentralization was not clear and that there were contradictions, reflecting a simultaneous process of centralization and decentralization, in which local performance indicators were centrally-set. If achieved, this resulted in increased financial and managerial autonomy. However, there was some supportive evidence that decentralization had improved patients’ health outcome, as well as improved efficiency in coordination and communication processes (Crinson, 2009 : p 140). The Government at the time met its target for treatment waiting lists by 2000- the number of people on the waiting list had fallen by 150,000. However, one main criticism came from the doctors, nurses and other health professionals where they were the ones dealing with prioritizing patients based on medical need, whilst having to explain to other anxious and angry patients w hy their treatment is delayed (Crinson, 2009). Coalition Government and the NHS In 2010, the newly established Coalition Government published the NHS White Paper ‘Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS policy’, prepared by the Department of Health. This policy included important changes compared to those proposed by the previous Government, and reflected the aims of the Coalition’s five year plan. Some of the proposed changes include: i) responsibility for commissioning of NHS services shifted to GPs, as the Primary Care Trusts and Strategic Health Authorities were dissolved, and ii) Foundation Trust status granted to all hospitals, ensuring increased autonomy and decision-making power. These reforms were part of the Coalition’s broader goal to give more power to local communities and empower GPs. By way of estimation, it is expected that this cost to about 45% for the NHS management. Strengthening of the NHS Foundation Trusts in order for these Trusts to provide financial regulation for all NHS services was another objective of the reform. An independent NHS board was set up, with the aim to lead and oversee specialised care and GP commissioning respectively. The objectives behind the Coalition Government’s plans was to increase health spending in real terms for each year of Parliament, with full awareness that this would impact the spending in other areas. The Coalition Government still maintained Beverage idea that all health care should be free and available to everybody at the point of delivery, instead of based on the ability to pay. It was expected that this approach would improve standards, support professional responsibility, deliver better value for money and as such create a healthier nation. Although the Prime Minister rectified it in his speech, the Government failed to provide a clear account of the shortcomings of the NHS and its challenges. The preparation of the White Paper, which was to pass the coalition committees examination, saw more compromises. The elimination of PCTs was not foretold but the conservatives would make PCTs remain as the statutory commissioning authority responsible for public health despite their commitment to devolving real budgets to GPs. It was rumoured that the Liberal Democrats policy of elected representatives to PCTs appear weak. The compromise was to give greater responsibility for public health to local authorities and eliminate PCTs. This resulted in the formation of the GP commissioning consortia and the Health and Wellbeing Boards. Despite concerns raised by stakeholders, the proposals saw just a few changes. Maybe we can call it a missed chance in retrospect. Conclusion In conclusion, it can be argued that without the NHS coming to force when it did at such a dire time after the Second World War, the already high mortality rates would have continued to rise. The NHS was vital in changing peoples’ lives in England and Wales and around the world. The system was designed meet everyone needs, regardless of financial abilities and without discrimination. Many changes have taken place since the birth of the NHS in 1948. Four different Governments adapted the NHS with their policies and legislation. However, throughout its evolution, the NHS still provides healthcare free of charge, as was intended from its conception. References Alcock, (2008). Social Policy in Britain. 3rd ed.Basingstoke: Palgrace Macmillan Alexion Pharma (2010). Politics and Policy [Online] www. [emailprotected] Available From: pnh-alliance.org.uk/politics-and-policy/the-department-of-health-publishes-equity-and-excellence-liberating-the-nhs. [Accessed on: 06 Nov. 12] Blakemore, K (2003). Social Policy an introduction. 2nd ed. United Kingdom: Open University Press. Blakemore, K, Griggs, E. (2003). Social Policy an introduction. 3nd ed.England: Open University Press. Bochel, H., Bochel, C., Page, R., Sykes, R. (2009). Social Policy Themes, Issues and Debates. 2nd ed. England: Pearson Education Limited. Crinson, I. (2009) Health Policy a critical perspective. London: Sage Publication Ltd. Glennerster, H. (2007). British Social Policy. 3rd ed. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing. Danis, M.Z., Karatas, K., Sahin, M.C. (2008). Reflections of neoliberal policies on healthcare field and social work practices. World Applied Sciences Journal, 5(2), 224-235. Ezeonu, I. (2008). Crimes of globalization: health care, HIV and the poverty of neoliberalism in Sub-Saharan Africa. International Journal of Social Inquiry, 1(2), 113-134. Hospital Stories from Hell: National Health Videos (1998) [DVD] London: Channel 4. Recorded off –air 19/03/1998 Macara, S. ( 1998). Nursing Studies. BBC News: True to its principles [Online]. Available from: NHS Choices. Moonie N. (2003). Health and Social Care. Series ed. Oxford: Heine Educational Publisher. Navarro, V. (2007). Neoliberalism as a class ideology; or, the political causes of the growth of inequalities. Int J Health Serv, 37(1), 47-62. NHS. ( 2012). Nursing Studies. About the NHS: NHS core principles [Online]. Available from: NHS Choices. Oliver, Adam. Further progress towards reducing waiting times. Health Policy Monitor, April 2006. Available at hpm.org/survey/uk/a7/1 . [Accessed on: 14 Nov. 12] Pennies from Bevan: National Health Videos (1998) [DVD] London: Chanel 4. Recorded off –air 14/06/1998 Rivett, G (2012). Nursing Studies, National Health Service History. [Online]. Available from: NHS history.net [Accessed 06 March 2012). Socialist Health (2010). Coalition Health Policy 2010 [Online] sochealth.co.uk. Available From: sochealth.co.uk/campaigns/health-and-social-care-bill-2012/coalition-health-policy-2010/. [Accessed on: 06 Nov.12] Viveash, B, Senior, M. (1998). Health and Illness. London: Macmillan Press.

Waste Management Essays

Waste Management Essays Waste Management Essay Waste Management Essay With a population of over 1. 2 billion, rapid urbanization and modernization of India is simply inevitable. Most of the cities are under-prepared for the rapid growth, because the infrastructure lacks serious development. Waste Management has become a matter of great concern to most city corporations, and there have been some instances of management collapse even in metropolitan cities in the year 2012. All this build-up took place within a single decade, which is why many corporations have awakened to the rude shock. There has been an unpredictable increase in both industrial and domestic wastes.The government and corporations have now taken cognizant of things that require immediate attention, and a lot of funds have been diverted to various waste management projects. Municipal waste is very different from the rural waste, which mostly comprises of agricultural and organic matter. Moreover, the total waste is rural areas is dispersed across a wider land area , which makes it more manageable. Since the urban population is obviously multiple folds more than the rural population, waste management becomes a very challenging task.Waste Management was conveniently done by dumping waste in rural areas, which then gave rise to a bigger menace of ‘pollution sinks’. Residential and commercial wastes are mostly in semisolid and solid forms. Even the bio-medical wastes, which have been treated fall into this category. Industrial waste on the other hand is not included in this category. Municipal solid waste management is quite a complex process, which clearly means a lot of investment in infrastructure, technology, and planning. It means efficiently handling: * Institutional waste * Dead animals waste at slaughter houses * Demolition and construction wastes Wastes which gets accumulated on the roads * Waste derived from horticultural processes * Treated bio-medical waste * Waste due to drains and outlets * Sludge from industries * Comm ercial waste from the market areas All these processes have to be handled on a large scale, which is why the government of India has come up with many infrastructure improvement plans. JNNURM program (Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission) is designed to create equitable, responsive, efficient and productive cities. Urban Local Bodies and the state governments are actively working towards bringing about urban transformations.Most of the reforms are aimed at infusing highest sustainability to infrastructure developments. In fact â‚ ¬ 253. 59 million has been approved for 44 projects. Hence, solid Waste Management sector in India has become a very lucrative sector for investors. Millions of tons of wastage are sent to the landfills near most of the metropolitan cities like Mumbai, Ahmadabad, Bhopal, Chennai, etc. These undertakings are managed and run by both government and private enterprises. Let us now look at some of the solid waste management projects taking place in some Indian cities. Mumbai, MaharashtraMumbai, better known globally as the Financial Capital of India, has a huge population of over 13 million according to the census of the year 2011. The city spans beyond a 472 sq kilometers, and generates approximately 9,500 MT of solid waste everyday. 7,000 MT of freight is recyclable and bio-degradable, and the remaining 2,500 MT of waste comes from construction and demolition projects. The city has four major landfills Mulund, Deonar, Kanjur and Gorai. The landfill of Gorai was closed scientifically in the year 2007. Deonar is another big landfill on the eastern suburbs, and here the waste is simply dumped without any kind of treatment.Even this dumpsite it is scientifically closed by covering it with an impermeable layer. 65 hector area of this dump is used for generating landfill gas collection. Ahmedabad, Gujarat This city generates more than 2,400 MT of non-segregated waste every day. More than 1,000 vehicles make trips to and from two of their major dumpsites, Pirana and Gyaspur Sanitary Landfill. The budget of â‚ ¬ 27. 30 million has been allocated to the Gyaspur scientific landfill development. Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh The only landfill of this city, the Bhanpur Dumpsite is located at around 15 km away from the city limits.There are proposals of opening three more new landfills around the city. These landfills of 64 acres are expected to serve for a period of 20 years. The project cost is estimated to be around â‚ ¬5,550,000, which is roughly around 400,000,000 INR. These projects will involve waste processing, along with deriving compost manure. Bangalore, Karnataka Bangalore, with a population of 8. 5 million, produces nearly 3,000 MT of waste per day, which comprises of around 53% of vegetable and organic waste, while paper and plastic makes for about 20%.Presently, there is a scarcity of landfills and with an erratic garbage collection system (as a result of privatization), the people of Bangalore have begun to dump the waste at any street corner resulting in garbage strewn all across the city. As per the directive from High Court dry and the wet waste generated in Bangalore city have be transported to different landfills instead of dumping them together. Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) is to transport only dry waste to the Mandur landfill. The wet waste is to go to the temporary landfill at Survey No. 1 of Chikknagamangala village, Sarjapur Hobli on the city’s outskirts. The State government has recently identified a new landfill which is spread across 94. 35 acres. The Government is also looking for foreign players to help resolve this issue. A Sri Lankan group has come forward to invest  Ã¢â€š ¬ 38. 46 million and they will implement Israeli waste management technology. Key drivers for the growth of Waste Management sector * Stricter norms are being proposed by the government for treating hazardous industrial wastes. Supreme Court rulings and public interest litigations are actively planning for managing domestic wastes. * Now that size of landfill space is shrinking with the increasing population in rural areas, it has become imperative to use better management and new technologies for managing waste. * Many government schemes and grants are being handed over for infrastructure development in small and medium sized towns. What it means for international companies Invariably, India offers excellent opportunities for international or foreign companies specializing in various waste management processes.Even the companies selling products and technology will find India as a big and lucrative marketplace. With a growing urgency for efficient waste management in many cities across India, there will be more and more projects and employment opportunities in the sector. As seen in the above mentioned cases, foreign companies get the golden opportunity of partnering with Indian players to create integrated solutions in various waste management a reas like feasibility study, design and planning, technical consultations, waste treatment technologies, restructuring of existing waste collection systems, etc.Some of the areas where foreign companies can play an integral part are: * Engineering services * Transportation and waste collection * Technical consulting * Performing feasibility studies * Landfill treatment * Composting technologies * Dumpsite treatment * Waste treatment plants * Operation and maintenance services * Biological waste treatment * Mechanical waste treatment * Sewage sludge treatment * Treatment and recycling

Support of Colorado House Bill 1175 - State Wide Smoking Ban Essay

Support of Colorado House Bill 1175 - State Wide Smoking Ban - Essay Example During the later years the chemicals in tobacco were being recognized by scientists, which made them realize the serious health effects that it can create. It was then in 1826, when the pure form of nicotine was fully discovered. Later the scientists concluded that nicotine is poisonous and began to warn people about the dangers of smoking tobacco. It was only during the 1900's that the manufacture and selling of cigarettes, which was a major tobacco product, began. (History of Tobacco) During World War I, the use of cigarette became so enormous that it was called as the "soldier's smoke". Then during World War II, cigarettes were provided to soldiers as a part of C-Rations like other food products. Later in the 1950's it was proved with evidence that smoking was a major cause for lung cancer. The Surgeon General's report on "Smoking and Health" in 1964, helped the government to regulate the market and sales of cigarettes. In the 1980's there were a number of lawsuits which were filed against the tobacco industries due to the hazardous effect that the product creates on people. But it is only in recent times that there are evidences revealing the fact that the tobacco industry is continuing to market and sell its product, knowing very well the harm that it causes to the public. It was also proved that the tobacco industry establishers knew that nicotine creates addiction and that they revealed this to millions of people knowingly to make them a prey to this addicti on. (History of Tobacco) Negative effects of second hand smoke Second-hand smoke - SHS, kills 53,000 non-smokers every year in U.S. and is found to be the third leading reason for preventable death in the country. This Second-hand smoke is alternatively known as passive smoke or environmental tobacco smoke - ETS. Research has revealed that each time a person breathes in second-hand smoke, he/she intakes over 100 harmful chemical agents like the carcinogens and toxins. This kind of SHS is the cause for death due to the following diseases: low birth weight, spontaneous abortion, heart diseases, stroke and negative results on the growth of cognition and behaviour, exacerbation of cystic fibrosis, lung as well as nasal sinus cancer, cervical cancer and also the Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. (Second-Hand Smoke) The SHS also has a serious impact on children which causes bronchitis and pneumonia, asthma induction and exacerbation, constant respiratory indications, middle ear getting infected and also low birth weight. The other factors of the SHS is that it is a major source of the Particulate Matter - PM pollution, which is a factor for pulmonary diseases, asthma and other lung diseases like cancer. Generally 3 cigarettes on fire in a room emit 10-fold more PM pollution than an eco-diesel engine. When children inhale this SHS smoke during their childhood it causes neck pain, spinal pain and back pain in their later ages of life. This kind of Second hand smoke also damages the child's ability to learn, and it is neurotoxic at very low levels. Studies revealed that more than 21.9 million children are proved to be at a danger of getting reading disabilities due to this second hand smoke. A greater level of exposure to this smoke also causes an increased disorder in math and visuospatial reason ing. (Second-Hand

Wikipedia entry. The Global city . Focusing on London Area Essay

Wikipedia entry. The Global city . Focusing on London Area Spitalfields - Essay Example A global city bears a large percentage of the world’s financial transaction, and there are twenty-five cities in the world which control almost the entirely global financial transactions. Among them, New York, London and Tokyo stand out as the most influential cities in the world, in matters of economy and financial transactions, and they are characterized by large scale in-migrations from different countries, societies and cultures throughout the world [1]. According to Sassen, a global city refers to the central â€Å"command and control point† of the global economy, where corporate presence is the fundamental characteristic, with many of the multinational corporations based in the city as their headquarters. Further, productive service companies such as accounting, management and law firms have also been attracted into the city, to provide services to the major corporations with their headquarters in such cities [1]. Productive Support Services in London Area Spitalf ields The concept of global city developed in the past two decades, and has become a phenomenal concept in the modern world, owing to the ability of the global cities to influence the financial and the economic activities of the world. ... Aspects of different socially stratified classes of societies The rise of the London Area Spitalfields as a global city started in the early 17th century, specifically in 1669, when Truman’s Brewery was opened and was followed by a major boost in 1682, when King Charles II issued a charter allowing for market activities to be held on two market days, namely Thursday and Saturdays [3]. It is the success of the market that encouraged people to settle in the region, and in-migration then followed, with the French being the first group to immigrate into the region, to bring their silk weaving skills which were highly desirable in the market. Subsequently, the Irish in-migrated into the region escaping from the potato famine, and were followed by the Jews. Between 1880s and 1970s, the area became an overwhelmingly Jewish community area, representing the largest Jewish community in Europe [4]. The Bangladeshi also followed the in-migration route, and by the early 20th century, the c ommunity had established itself in the London Area Spitalfields, and introduced further Eastern cultures, businesses and trades. Therefore, the London Area Spitalfields suits the definition of a Global city, because it has become the societal and cultural melting and fusion point, where different cultures from the East and the West were integrated, to create a unique regional culture of its own [5]. The evidence of the people who have given the London Area Spitalfields its unique name and culture is still observable to date, with the existence of Jewish synagogues, Methodist Chapel, Muslim mosques and Huguenot church for Christians [3]. Characteristics of London Area Spitalfields