Cultural Observation Essay

Cultural Observation Culture is the sum total of learned beliefs, values, and customs in which a people of a particular society live. Culture is dynamic and always changing but retains patterns that form its basic infrastructure. Many aspects of a people’s society make up one’s culture including religion, economy, language, politics, etc. Cultures are not finite and in many instances have there own number of sub cultures within them. This variation among cultures brings about man consequences between populations, which can be positive or negative. I have been given the task to use participant observation in order to form a complete report on the daily social interactions of humans in the Saint Louis area. The location I chose is in the middle of a higher learning environment known as a college campus. The area lies in the middle of the campus and has a large structure with a device that measures and tracks time. It is a frequently used path by the students of the campus, which allows for many social observations to be made. As stated earlier the space is a walking highway for students with the most traffic-taking place in the morning at the end of each hour for a period of about ten minutes. The pathway is a large round a bout that circles around the clock tower structure with 4 perpendicular paths continuing off from the circle. I sat on a large concrete staircase that overlooks the circle, for my observations. I sat for one and a half hours observing the following. For the duration of my observation, which began at 11:00am I had many people sitting on the stair case fixture in front of me. At one point there were a total of 23 people sitting on the concrete stairs. These 23 people were paired off in groups of no more than 6. When the time came closer to the end of the hour, there was a dramatic increase in traffic flow around the clock structure. Many of the people walked at a steady pace and seemed to have been walking solo. Some people walked in groups but if it was a group of more than one the majority walked in pairs. As the new hour began the traffic flow dramatically dropped. The make up of the study population varied in many categories. The ages of the people were predominantly that of 18-21 year olds, with occasional middle-aged people and young professionals. During the rush of traffic it seemed to have a larger population of females than males walking through the area. This was also found for the people who chose to sit on the concrete stairs. Of the people who sat down, 15 of them were female and the rest male. During the rush I noticed many different ethnicities that ranged from Caucasian white, to Asian, to Middle Eastern, and African American. Disregarding race, a pattern among the people arose during observation. The females leaned towards wearing more high cost garments than the males did. This related to the observation that many women seemed to be of high economic status in comparison to males. In regards to discernable space I found that females were much more prone to putting minimal space between themselves when interacting. Males seemed to keep a good distance from each other while interacting. For the majority, during the rush of walking traffic, people followed the rule of walking to there right while entering the circle even though this rule was not stated on any sign that I could see. Some people were more aggressive in there walking patterns and people on bicycle contraptions were permitted the right of way in most occasions. Physical interactions were most abundant among females and males who interacted. Males who were walking with a female had less space between them than males who were walking with another male. People sitting on the stairs would occasional engage in physical contact with the highest percentage of outcomes being a laugh following the physical touch. Overall I noticed a pattern that people of the same â€Å"race† for the majority stuck together, giving the impression of subcultures with in the population. Given the location, I concluded that the reason for all the people in the walking rush had the shared commitment of attending classes for learning purposes. For the people who sat down on the stairs it was much harder to find a reason for there public social interaction. The weather was optimal that day which would most likely attract such a leisurely activity response. The population was visually extremely diverse but some common trends were found that differentiated people. The most apparent difference was that of the nature of the people of Asian descent. They more than anyone kept to there own group and clearly spoke a different language than the rest of the population. This could be a barrier between them and the rest of the people who seem to speech the dominant language of the area. From my observations I have been able to determine many things about the population of Saint Louis. More research must be done especially with people of different ages in order to get a more accurate picture of how people in Saint Louis behave but from my observations many patterns stuck out among people from ages 18-21. One of the most puzzling aspects was the wearing of a garment on the top of a person’s head. I could not find a distinct pattern as to what type of people or what situations these head garments were supposed to be for. The only practical usage I came up with was the use of it to keep the sun of their eyes, but many did not use it for this purpose. If it pertains to simply a fashion accessory it would appear to be more common among younger male populations. Another observation was the commonality of wearing t-shirts or other garments that either said Saint Louis University or Saint Louis in some form. From this I have determined that people are proud of the organizations and areas they have some sort of investment in. This also led me to believe that people use their garments to communicate subtly to other people certain information about themselves. A majority of garments worn had some form of there language written on them. Overall more research must be done on the human race to cross-reference these ideas. It is obvious that culture is dynamic and works on several different levels in this complex society of people. Simply observing can tells us many things about there culture but will only get us so far. We must make plans to immerse ourselves in there actual culture to truly get an accurate picture of what it means to be part of Saint Louis, and ultimately, what it means to be human.

Oral and maxillofacial surgery

Dry. Distant Patella on a regular basis. He strives hard till he achieves what he has aimed for. His dedication towards work was seen in performance during four years of study and internship period at Carnival Dental hospital. His assistance in various oral and monomaniacal surgeries in Operation Theater was significant. His ward duties like postoperative care of patients who had undergone surgery were worth toting.His strong theoretical fundamentals help him in his practical work. This had impressed me and am confident about his surgical abilities. Articulate and sharp, his work was applauded by faculty, peers and juniors. His evolved communication skills were used very well in his internship. Here I saw a different side Of his – the compassionate, patient and gentle one. His desire to make a difference was apparent In his entire period under me. And t seemed like he would do more and then just pursue a career in dentistry given his inclination.I have guided him on oral and m onomaniacal surgery in fourth year. In addition to trying to do well in exams and tests his class participation was a testament to his interest in this field. I found that he had clear understanding of what was required in reading material and additionally he had inputs and information which was current. This was driven by his incessant desire to learn, explore and grow in areas that were to only a part of our curricular but from outside also.This was unique and a credit to his quest for knowledge. His decision to pursue dental degree in university is ideal given the requirement of dedicated and brilliant people we require in allied areas. He has my strongest recommendation for admission to graduate program at your university. Name: dry. Mishap ideas Designation: head of department, Department of oral and monomaniacal surgery.

Battle Royal Essays - Social Philosophy, Philosophy Of Life

Battle Royal After I read the story "Battle Royal" by Ralf Ellison, I could not restrain my thoughts about issues of morality and what it has to do with reality, from clashing in to one another in my mind. As these two completely different ideas were pushing me to the brink of madness, my mind began to click. The swirling messy cocktail of two abstract ideas started taking shape as I began remembering what I had learned earlier in school, and from my summer readings. At this point I came to the realization that a persons reality, that is that persons mental reflection of the society and or time in which he or she live in, is consistent with that persons morality or standards of right and wrong. I realize that my concept of a person's reality being consistent with morality is quite confusing. I also except the fact that there are always exceptions to rules. In this case it being that some peoples moralities contradicting their reality. However this realization of mine makes perfect sense to me, an d I will attempt to explain my thoughts to you in hopes that by the time you are finished reading this essay you will understand what I mean. The story "Battle Royal" is the key in understanding and seeing the relationship between morality and reality. The characters in this story, namely the grandfather and his grandson, reveal to us their individuality, principles, morals, and ethics doing so they unfold a map that reveals their mental reality. Because their principals, morals and ethics reveal to us their mental reality, then their mental reality discloses the reality of the society in which they live in. However to clarify my thoughts I will use Book 5 of Plato's "Allegory of the Cave" to elaborate more about reality and morality. And from that I will show you how the grandson breaks away from the reality that he is been taught to see, and steps in to the light that his grandfather guide's him too before he dies. "Battle Royal" is a story about a black boy that is psychologically wakened when he overhears what his grandfather says at his deathbed to his father. This boy, before he realizes who he really is, and his social standing in the society that he lives, is searching to find himself. However this search is filled with many obstacles, because he lives in a time when people of his status are conditioned to act, talk, and behave in a certain way. Our hero's journey toward the light (truth) is started a long time ago. However in the beginning he is unable to get on the right course, due to the wrong advice he is given by different people; he says it as "All my life I was looking for something, and every were that I turned someone tried to tell me what it was. I accepted their answers too, though they were often in contradiction" (448). Because each time that he accepts their advice he is little by little pushed off the right track. It is not until he realizes that he is searching for himself, and instead of asking others questions, he needs to ask the questions to himself. Once he discovers whom to turn to, he begins a long and difficult journey in which he realizes that he is a unique person, he puts it as, "I am nobody but myself."(449). This means that he is unique and he is who he is, black. However before he comes to this enlightenment he discovers that he is an "invisible man"(449). He marks himself invisible because in the society in which a person is unheard and unseen by others is invisible. At that point our young friend's problem is clear. He is a black boy in a White men's world, in which he is not see or heard. Yet he still does not know what to do about it, well at-least not until he hears his grandfathers words to his father: Son, after I'm gone I want you to keep up a good fight. I never told you, but your life is a war and I have been a traitor all my born days, a spy

Psychology Short Answer Questions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Psychology Short Answer Questions - Essay Example Binocular disparity is the term given to the difference the fractional difference between an image that exists as a result of the eyes being marginally separated in their place on the face. The image that is received from each eye is just slightly different as a result of this place and must be appropriately processed by the brain into an integrated single image. The correspondence problem is the problem associated with the process of how the visual perception system goes about finding a way to match pairs of images to arrive at vergence and then go about coding the relative depth of each into a unified image. The difficulty in solving the correspondence problem lies in the fact that a perfect correlation between the pairs of images can only be arrived at under very specific and unusual conditions. Binocular disparity is related to motion parallax in that each is a method of measuring the perception of depth through the discrepancy that exists as a result of the disparity of image reception onto the retina due to the placement of the eyes. This difference in the position of the eyes is manipulated by the visual system through a process of triangulation that measures distance from the retina to an object and in order to integrate the slight disparity into a unified whole. The differential between the placement of the eyes thus creates a divergence in vantage point that creates the effect of three-dimensionality. Both binocular disparity and binocular parallax are the basis for creating depth when one views an image measuring depth using stereopsis. 2. The picture on the left below shows the so-called caf wall illusion in which the grout lines (grey lines between the black and white 'tiles') are parallel but appear to be tilted with respect to each other. (a) Find and briefly describe in your own words an explanation of the caf wall illusion that you find convincing (make sure that you do not write more than 300 words). One reasonable explanation for how the caf wall illusion works was found on the web site BrainConnection.Com (http://www.brainconnection.com/teasers/main=illusion/cafe-wall). The explanation discovered here suggests that the illusion is the product of the inherent limitations that exist in the way excitatory and inhibitory neurons work together to achieve a balance that facilitates the detection of contrasts. The illusion illustrates how when these neurons attempt to instantaneously detect very fine contrasts, they instead create a distortion by making bright areas appear darker and dark areas appear brighter than they are really are. (b) Why do you find the explanation you describe

Human Resources Management Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 2

Human Resources Management - Research Paper Example Then by knowing who needs the training, there is a significant assessment of the need of the participants of the training (p.181). By finding their prevailing potential or capacity, the actual design for training would be remarkably considered based on each of their actual and individual needs. In addition, by finding what subjects should the training cover is another important way on how to assess the need for training (p.181). In order for the entire training to be effective, it is appropriate to only include subjects that are essentials or highly needed. There are three categories of training methods that are widely used in human resource management which include presentation methods, hands-on methods, and group-building methods (p.189). Presentation methods are designed to be more educational for the purpose of acquiring substantial facts, ideas or information which could be obtained from lectures, DVDs and other relevant presentations. The good thing about these training methods is that individuals could personally learn from various forms of presentations different from hands-on and group building methods. For hands-on methods, the goal is to expose the participants or individuals to actual training programs such as role playing, simulations and on-the-job trainings. The difference found in these methods compared with the presentation methods is the occurrence of actual immersion in which there is a need to facilitate learning through concrete training activities so as to help enhance skills for instance. There are also actual ac tivities involved in group-building methods, but these are most likely about enhancing group or team’s participation, to establish performance of the entire group or team. How to evaluate the success of a training program is another important consideration in the human resource management. Before anything else, it is important to include the idea that the associated goals of the training program should be

Legal systems in Western countries recognize Essay

Legal systems in Western countries recognize - Essay Example Draft Introduction: Legal systems in Western countries recognize equal protection of the law. Therefore equality is not an issue.1 However, equality in practice cannot always be achieved as the equal rights of one group can conflict with the equal rights of another. (Discuss the purpose of equality laws and the tensions that can arise between sex-based rights and faith based rights). The UK recognized sexual orientation as a new sex-based right worthy of equal protection of the law.2 The expansion of sex-based equalities under the Equality Act 2010 is flawed however. Identify the purpose of the essay. Hypothesis: the Equality Act 2010, is a reminder of the tensions between the recognition and protection of equal rights in favour of one group against another.3 Faith-based and Sexuality-based Equality Laws The most common tensions between faith-based and sexuality-based equality laws is the rights of gays to the equal protection of the law and freedom of religion which generally includ es the right to discriminate against gays particularly the right to oppose same-sex unions and adoptions.

Citibank IN New Countries for Futures Markets Development Essay

Citibank IN New Countries for Futures Markets Development - Essay Example Furthermore, the projected customer base also determines the market entry approach that best fits that target market. In the case of Chile, the country illustrates an ideal market size approximated at 17.4 million citizens, and with the main degree of economic freedom. In this regard, the best market entry approach for Chile is the improvement of customer engagement and satisfaction through more relevant ad timely communications. This is mainly because of the large projected customer base that in turn requires for additional attention. The real-time relationship between the customers and the bank backed by the timely communications offers in-depth customer insights through each interaction point (Czinkota 512). The turning of customer’s insights into automated and operational brilliance further paves way for the new banking service in Chile thus leading to realization of higher profits. This approach also suits Chile as it incorporates the research evidencing the deficiency of banks to provide value to their customers. Countering this pre-existent condition, this approach enhances the customer’s records using key insights such as their lifestyle and banking behavior. As a result, there exists a more relevant and effective distribution of value to all segments of the customer base. Subsequently, factors such as high ranking in World Bank’s income groups of 2012 and lower middle economy characterize Bolivia. Furthermore, the similarity between Bolivia and Chile as illustrated by the cultural dimensions calls for an entering approach that depicts slow customer attrition while building stronger relationships (Carlton 252). This approach ensures minimal dissatisfaction of customers thus preventing loss of established customer bases to competitors. Through creation of early warning systems, this approach identifies the customers’ turning points prior to their occurrence thus providing a chance to address the customers at risk. In other wor ds, this approach ensures continuous productivity through active implementation of retention measures through shaping the services according to the customer’s preferences. On the other hand, Slovenia illustrates a collective society whose members exchange adherence and loyalty. With a reduced market size, Slovenia calls for a real time customer growth initiative. This approach propels take cross-sell and up-sell to new heights by triggering the target market’s readiness to open new accounts and enjoy the services offered. Through development of cross-sell and up-sell programs, identification of customer’s readiness to create, change or start utilizing on-line services becomes predictable. As a result, the bank gains control over the sale of certain products and services through studying customer behavior. Foreign direct investment actively participates to the growth of global business through provision of new markets and applicable marketing channels (Graham & S paulding 1). Furthermore, it contributes to provision of cheaper production facilities in a country like Chile where the population is relevantly high. Furthermore, licensing accrues for significantly higher returns through engagement into relatively risky markets such as Bolivia. Following to extreme competition, foreign direct investment facilitates provision and effective utilization of new technology, products and skills. On the other hand, these aspects aid the development of a strong forward

Case study presentation PowerPoint Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Case study - PowerPoint Presentation Example This will help motivate employees such that they take up their tasks as responsibilities and not routine work (Adams, 1997, p.50-58). Thorntree should use training and development within the organisation to boost the employee morale and creativity (Fox, 2007, p. 22-32). The management in Benchill should adopt a top-down approach and, hence, it should be an authoritative culture in the company (Durai, 2010, p.119). The human resource practices that managers in Speke Furnishing should aim for will be Succession planning and performance appraisal to keep the employees always on their toes (Kleiman, 2003, p.14-18). In Throntree the management should aim at creating a diverse workforce and also allow them creative freedom so that they are able to bring new ideas to the table (Deb, 2006, p.77). The HR practices should reward the employees by giving both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation (Armstrong, 2006, p.21-28). The reward system should also be linked to a fair appraisal system that would help generate greater transparency (Jennifer, 2009, p.258). Career development plans should also be introduced so as to improve the learning curve of the employees and also to generate job satisfaction (Aamodt, 2012, p.330-336). This is important because job satisfaction is directly linked to employee motivation (Madura, 2006, p.373-375). Steps should also be taken to create a flat organizational hierarchy that allows greater ease in communications and prevents grapevine communications in the organization (Hamilton, 2010, p.40-41). The HR strategy in case of all the three companies will be very different from each other. Different concepts of human resource practices need to be adopted by all the three. People, as we know, are very critical for the success of every organisation and serve as the backbone for achieving the purpose of the company (Enz, 2010, p.721). Every company should design their organisational culture keeping in mind the goals of

Cost allocation and activity based costing Essay

Cost allocation and activity based costing - Essay Example Cost allocation is a concept that refers to the determination of the expenses incurred to offer a service. Costs can be allocated as direct, indirect and incremental costs. In the production process, manufacturers should be able to determine what costs fall under direct, indirect and incremental, in order to facilitate the ascertainment of cost of production. Activity based Costing is a concept that refers to the ascertainment of various activities involved in the production of goods and services. Thereafter, the overhead costs are allocated to each activity and then assigned to the products and services. Traditional costing on the other hand, allocates overhead costs using predetermined rate. That is, there is no allocation of costs on activities prior to the products and services. According to Vercio and Shoemaker, the most accurate method of cost allocation is Activity-Based. Unlike traditional costing method, Activity Based Costing recognizes the fact that, during a production pr ocess, not all costs are attributed to the volume of products and services produced. Therefore, Activity Based Costing determines the cost drivers associated with the customers, batches, products and administration related costs directly connected to the units produced. In order to ensure accuracy in cost measurements to facilitate informed decision-making during the production process, the costs that are not related to unit production should be secluded. In batch processing, the fundamental idea is to reduce the cost of production.

Early Civilizations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 70

Early Civilizations - Essay Example The discovery of the Armana letters, a group of more than one thousand letters in the capital of the Egyptian empire, Akhenaten had great significance in the study of the early Egyptian civilization. The letters written by the Egyptian pharaohs were addressed to the leaders of the Hittite state while others were from the Hittites to the Egyptians thereby providing adequate evidence that despite the rudimentary form of life in the period, the two had effective modes of communication and had often interacted diplomatically. The letters proved that indeed, the earlier civilizations had effective archiving technologies capable of protecting their important documents for generations. Additionally, the discovery of the letters corroborated the existence of the arts at that time. It was artistic for the people to make inscriptions on stone tablets thereby serving as their letters and an effective mode of communication. Egypt, Syria, Babylon and  also Hittite were among the earliest empires and kingdoms in the world. While the first three had direct archeological evidence to prove their existence, the Hittite kingdom was discovered much later owing to the fact that they latter disintegrated into smaller Neo-Hittite states following a number of inversions of their kingdom. However, their discovery resulted from the discovery of the cuneiform texts around their capital in Hati. The Lords of the Hattusha were the rulers of the Hittite empire. They made important decisions concerning war and imposed taxes on their people. The Hittites had horses and created chariots which aided their military transportation. The Hittite won a number of battles especially under the leadership of the Suppiluliuma. The people innovatively made their chariots to resemble the Egyptian chariots only that they were smaller and therefore capable of moving faster than the Egyptian chariots, which besides their huge sizes had d ecorations most of which burdened their horses thereby slowing them down. The truce implied that each side accepted the terms negotiated for peace. However, the letters and cuneiform texts proved that both sides claimed victory; a political moved aimed at uniting the people of the different kingdoms under their respective leaderships.   

Diffusion and Osmosis Through Dialysis tubing Essay Example for Free

Diffusion and Osmosis Through Dialysis tubing Essay We did this experiment to test the diffusion of different substances through dialysis tubing. We used what we knew about diffusion to make predictions on what we thought the mass of the dialysis tubing to be after submerging them for 30 mins and we knew that diffuse occurs from highest concentration to lowest concentration. Since the dialysis tubings are filled with different substances than what they are being put into then they should all gain or lose mass. If the dialysis tubing is submerged in different substance than what is in the tubing then some of the dialysis tubings will lose mass and some will gain mass. To begin this experiment we filled 5 dialysis tubings with one of the five substances: water, egg white, NaCl, glucose, or sucrose. The equipment used was: 5 dialysis tubing, a scale, bekers, water, egg white, sucrose, glucose, NaCl, and 5 cups. We put the five dialysis tubing filled with one of the five substance into a cup filled with one of the substance: water, egg white, NaCl, glucose, or sucrose. Then we let them sit in there for 30 mins then took them out of the cups and remassed them. The dialysis tubing did let some of the different solutions in but not all of them. Most of the dialysis tubing gained mass and some lost some mass as well. We found that the substances go from an area of high concentration to an area of low concentration. The data supports our purpose of doing this experiment to find out what happens when a substance in a dialysis tubing is put into a cup of a difference substance to see which ones gain mass and which ones lose mass. A pattern of the data is that the control group did not gain or lose mass. Two of the substances gained mass and two of the substance lost mass. Our results proved our hypothesis that some of the dialysis tubings would gain mass and some of the dialysis tubing would lose mass. Because two of the dialysis tubings gained mass and two of the dialysis tubings lose mass it just shows that the substances went for an area of high concentration to an area of low concentration. A few errors of our experiment is that we could have not used enough of the substances in the dialysis tubings or we could have left the dialysis tubings the cups of substance for a long amount of time which could have changed our results majorly because the more time the dialysis tubings sit in the cup of substances the more they had time to diffuse. Osmosis through Dialysis Tubes We performed this experiment to see how water moves across a semi-permeable membrane. We filled the dialysis tubes with different Mole concentrations of sucrose, and we used our knowledge of osmosis to figure out the different concentrations. If the dialysis tube increases both in size and weight, then that dialysis tube had the highest mole concentration of sucrose. We learned that during osmosis, a form of passive diffusion which means that it requires no energy to move across the membrane, water will always move to the area where the water concentration is lower, so if the sucrose has a high mole concentration then the water will move into the bag since there is less water there, and if the bag has a low mole concentration then there will be little water moving into the bag since there is already a relatively high concentration in the bag. The materials we used to conduct this experiment were: 6 Dialysis Tubes, 6 different mole concentrations of sucrose (0 M concentration, 2 x 10⠁ »Ã‚ ¹M concentration, 4 x 10⠁ »Ã‚ ¹ M concentration, 6 x 10⠁ »Ã‚ ¹ M concentration, 8 x 10⠁ »Ã‚ ¹ M concentration, 1 M concentration), 6 cups to hold the water, a scale to weigh the mass of the dialysis tubes before submerging the bags in water and after. To begin this experiment we first filled the bags with the different mole concentrations of sucrose, the different concentrations were color-coordinated with different colors for a different concentration. Next we weighed the mass of the bags before submerging them in the water, and filled the cups with water so that we could submerge the tubes. After the bags were massed and the cups were filled with water we submerged the bags for 30 minutes. After the 30 minutes were up we took the bags out of the water and blotted them off with a dry paper towel. Finally we massed the bags and recorded our results so that we could compare them with the results from before we submerged the tubes. After analyzing our results we concluded that the Blue substance was water, because it gained no mass, The purple substance was the 2 x 10⠁ »Ã‚ ¹ M concentration because it gained little mass, more than the blue substance. The light green substance the 4 x 10⠁ »Ã‚ ¹ M concentration because it gained some mass, more than the 2 x 10⠁ »Ã‚ ¹ .concentration but not as much as the 6 x 10⠁ »Ã‚ ¹ M concentration. The red substance was the 6 x 10⠁ »Ã‚ ¹ M concentration because it gained more mass than the 4 x 10⠁ »Ã‚ ¹ M concentration but less than the 8 x 10⠁ »Ã‚ ¹ M concentration. The green substance was the 8 x 10⠁ »Ã‚ ¹ M concentration because it gained more mass than the .6 Molar concentration but less than the 1 M concentration, and finally the Yellow substance was the 1 M concentration, because it gained the most mass. Our results answered our question, How can you tell the molar concentration of a 0 .2, .4, .6, .8 , and 1 molar concentration of sucrose? Our results showed us that our hypothesis, If the dialysis tube increases both in size and weight, then that dialysis tube had the highest mole concentration of sucrose, was also correct because the Yellow substance gained the most mass out of all the other substances and was also the substance with the highest Molar concentration of 1, and the Blue concentration gained no mass therefore it was water, because if there is as much water on the inside as the outside then no osmosis takes place. Some sources of error for this experiment is that we could have left the solutions in longer, possibly changing our results. Or that we could have also not used enough of the solutions. Diffusion using Potato rounds We are conducting this experiment in order to see what happens during the process known as diffusion across a semi-permeable membrane. Our hypothesis was that if the Molar concentration is higher in a sucrose solution then the potato will lose mass and if the Molar concentration is lower in a sucrose solution then the potato will gain mass. We learned about diffusion and how a semi-permeable membrane only lets certain molecules pass through it. Diffusion is the act of a molecule passively passing through a semi-permeable membrane. This action of diffusion helps regulate the cell’s processes and this is done on a regular basis so that the cell can live and function. For this experiment we needed: 36 potato sticks (18 of a sweet potato and 18 of a regular potato), 6 sucrose solutions (0M, .2M, .4M, .6M, .8M, and 1M), a scale, cups. First what we did was we massed our potato sticks, and recorded them. Next we filled the cups with the different solutions of sucrose and submerged the potato sticks for 30 minutes. After the 30 minutes we massed the potato sticks and recorded the changes and analyzed the previous data with the data we received, here are our results: After analyzing our results, we concluded that the potato sticks in the Blue concentration gained the most mass out of all the solutions, and the yellow concentration grained not mass, but instead lost mass. This is because water will move from an area of high concentration to an area of low concentration. We also calculated the water potential of the potato sticks and found it to be -7.86 for a regular potato and -17.01 for the sweet potato. All of the experiments that we did, the substances had a semi-permeable membrane that only let certain things through it. All of the experiments consisted of putting different substances into cups filled with different solution and seeing if they lost or gained mass dependent on if the amount of water that was in the substances and the solutions. There was a pattern throughout all of the experiments where one of the substances in the cups of solution gained nor lost mass but stayed the same and two of the substances in the cups of solution gained mass and two of the substances in the cups of solution lost mass.

Synopsis of the films plot

Synopsis of the films plot Synopsis of the films plot The story takes place in 1959 at Welton School in Vermont in the USA, an upper private preparatory school for boys who want to get into famous universities: the Ivy League. The fall term begins with a very traditional ceremony during which a new English Literature teacher, Mr. John Keating, former student at the institution, is introduced. With his unconventional teaching methods, he inspires the students to act as individuals. He encourages them to think for themselves. They have to find new points of view, to discover their own ways and feelings, and to Seize the day. The film focuses on the new teacher and on a group of his students: Neil Perry, Knox Overstreet, Charlie Dalton, Steven Meeks, Richard Cameron and Gerard Pitts, who have known each other for several years, and a new one, Todd Anderson. They decided to revive the Dead Poets Society but interpreted in their own way: a kind of literary club of which Mr Keating was a member. This movie is about what happens when these students decide to pursue their own desires, and to live life with the passion that Mr. Keating encouraged. Ultimately, it is about what happens when a few idealistic students find themselves confronted against conservative forces that resist all change, including the drive for personal self-determination. Overview of the characters Mr Keating A former student of Welton Academy, as a teacher,Mr Keating is the boys source of inspiration and encouragement. He makes poetry drip from [their] tongues like honey, using it as a medium to encourage his charges to strive for excellence and individuality. He also introduces his students to the phrase, Carpe diem, a Latin expression that translates as Seize the day. Mr Keatings teaching methodology is highly unconventional and conflicts with Weltons four pillars: Tradition, Honour, Discipline, and Excellence. He is dismissed from his position at the end of the film, charged with causing Neil Perry to commit suicide. Neil Perry Neil Perry is a confident and popular student who excels in his studies. He is well-liked by both his peers and teachers and is a natural leader. Inspired by his passionate English teacher, Mr Keating, he re-establishes the Dead Poets Society. This shows that he is prepared to challenge the schools authority. Neils aspirations to become an actor are snuffed by his controlling father who refuses to give Neil any choice about his future. As a result, Neil commits suicide at the end of the film. Todd Anderson Todd is a shy and introverted student who is new to Welton Academy. Todds older brother was a previous valedictorian of Welton and both the school and his parents clearly have high expectations of him. An obedient and studious young man, Todd tries hard to please his teachers but lacks confidence at the beginning of the film and this prevents him from reaching his potential. However, both Neil and Mr Keating support and encourage him and he consequently develops considerably as a character. At the end of the film, he is the first student to stand on his desk in support of Mr Keating. Knox Overstreet Though shy and academically focussed at the beginning of the film, Knox develops considerably as a result of his inchoate relationship with Chris. Romantic and idealistic, he pursues Chris relentlessly, applying Mr Keatings philosophies to his circumstance. By seizing the day and taking risks, he ultimately wins Chris, in spite of the fact that she is practically married to Chet Danberry, the son of a family friend. Knoxs character is evidence of the positive effect of Mr Keatings teachings. Charlie Dalton or Nuwanda Rebellious, recalcitrant and reckless, Charlie Dalton is the most extraverted and daring of Weltons students. He resists the authority of the school and is ultimately expelled for refusing to sign the document condemning Mr Keating. Attention-seeking and chauvinistic, he also invites two girls to the Dead Poets Society meetings. Though he admires and respects Mr Keating, he takes Keatings principles too far and takes several imprudent risks. Richard Cameron Cameron is an assiduous and ambitious student who conforms totally to both the schools and his parents expectations. Keen to succeed academically and win the favour of his teachers, he is very compliant and is prepared to betray his friends in order to further his own interests. Cameron is ultimately responsible for the dismissal of Mr Keating as he selfishly accuses Keating of encouraging Neil to commit suicide; he is complicit with the schools administrators. Steven Meeks Meeks is the most academically gifted of the boys and; this is certainly his reputation amongst his peers. Though studious and compliant, he is well-liked by the others and is a strong supporter of Mr Keating. Like others, he reluctantly joins the Dead Poets Society but ultimately embraces all that it stands for. Mr. Perry Mr Perry is Neils paternalistic and dominating father. He is determined that Neil will finish school at Welton and study medicine. To this end, he ensures that Neil is focussed and not distracted by unnecessary extra-curricular activities such as the school magazine. Neil rebels against this but unable to confront his father, ultimately decides that he is trapped. Mr Perrys refusal to support Neils acting aspirations ultimately lead to Neils death. Mr. Nolan He is the director of Welton School illustrating the four pillars of the institution â€Å"tradition, honour, discipline, excellence†. He is the opposite character of Mr Keating and represents the conformism of the high class society at this time. He assures to send his students in elitist colleges and possesses the complete trust of their parents. Gerard Pitts Pitts is an insignificant character but is part of the core group of boys who form the Dead Poets Society. Tall and lanky, he is socially awkward and somewhat withdrawn. Though he is introverted and does not seem to take risks, he rises from his seat at the end of the movie, demonstrating that he clearly respects Mr Keating. Different styles of Leadership 1. Charismatic leadership vs. Authoritarian leadership In this part, we are going to focus on two characters and their difference of personality and behaviours through their leadership styles: Mr Keating and Mr Nolan. Mr Keating: a charismatic leader Charisma is linked to a number of criteria that we will develop. During the entire movie, Mr Keating seems to be someone who pays much attention to the person he is talking to. Hes making that person (the students) feel free to be who they are and feel like the most important person in the world. Hes able to create a climate of intimacy which is linked to the trust. For example, during his first class, hes talking to the students as individuals. He wants to make them realize that they all have their own desires and he wants them to follow their own path. Mr Keating pays a great deal of attention in scanning and reading his environment, and is good at picking up the moods and concerns of both individuals and larger audiences. In this way, he knows how to answer to the students needs and to adapt himself to these others. A good example is when he teaches in class: he knows hes subject to a number of interrogations but he adapts his exercises to the concerns of the students. He also uses a wide range of methods to manage his image. He engenders trust through visible self-sacrifice and takes personal risks in the name of his beliefs. He shows great confidence in his followers (the students). He is very persuasive and makes very effective use of body language as well as verbal language. Mr Keating has a deliberate charisma in a theatrical sense: he makes effective use of storytelling, including the use of symbolism and metaphor. Especially when he talked about The Dead Poets Society for the first time, he described the world of poetry which is linked to passion and aim of life. In the same time, we have the impression that all along the movie he tries to build a group, his group of students, by making it very clear and distinct, separating it from the other classes. No other group has classes outside or on a football field. In this way, he is building the image of the group, in particular in the minds of his students, as being â€Å"different† to all others, so â€Å"superior† in a way. Also, he attached himself firmly to the identification of the group, such that to join the group is to become one with the leader. In doing so, he creates an unchallengeable position for himself. Furthermore, Mr Keating appears as a Charismatic Leader because he may not want to force anything. His beliefs are by themselves highly valuable. As we saw, Mr Keating tends to be a charismatic leader. A number of criteria are relevant to emphasize this theory as his vision, his sensitivity to the environment, to students need, his personal risk taking and his unconventional behaviour. Besides, according to Emily Spencer â€Å"charismatic leaders are the product of follower perceptions and attributions that are influenced by actual leader traits and behaviour, the context of the situation, and the individual and collective needs of the followers†, we will study later how Mr Keating influenced his students and answers to their fundamental needs. â€Å"A charismatic leader uses his personality and charms rather any form of external power or authority† this characterizes Mr Keatings behaviour compared to Mr Nolans one. He never forced the students to do anything and he encourages them to find their freedom. Also, charisma is linked to a unique vision, which we will develop below. Mr Keating has his own vision and uses unconventional ways to express it. But because of his confidence in his own beliefs, he thought they were infallible, he didnt think about the impact of his changes even when he received adequate warning from others. Although he meant well, it was the cause of a lot of problems. Mr Nolan: an authoritarian leader â€Å"A leader is a person whose charisma helps them to guide a group of people in a direction they believe is desirable. Someone with authority uses their power to guide a group of people in a direction they believe is desirable.† Mr Nolan is the director of the School. â€Å"Tradition, honour, discipline, excellence† is his key words and his power is based on it. He is from the aristocratic and traditional society; his role is to preserve the integrity of the school and to prepare his students to get into the high society and to be their new models. â€Å"If a person has the ability force a person to perform a certain act, or the ability to otherwise coerce them, than that person is an authoritarian†. Mr Nolan can be recognized by how he makes his decision. There is no discussion or the discussion begins with a foregone conclusion. Also, he guides the students with negative motivation that leave them in a bad position. They feel that they are the only ones who disagree and that is why they have to be exiled. Ultimately, this means that the only way to really oppose Mr Nolan was with the support of a sizable percentage of the group. Mr Nolan will speak of betrayal in this case. Mr Keating would not, as a disagreement is never a betrayal unless there is an expectation of being followed and obeyed. In comparison, Mr Keating guided students by the infectious nature of his vision. They wanted to follow him, but they were free not to. The relationship between Neil and his father Neils aspirations are to become an actor but they are snuffed by his controlling father who refuses to give Neil any choice about his future. Mr Perry is a paternalistic and dominating father. He is determined that Neil will finish school at Welton and study medicine. In this part, we are going to show that Neils character has a charismatic behaviour and his father an authoritarian one. Thus, we will try to establish a comparison between the Mr Keating and Mr Nolan relationship and the Neil and Mr Perry relationship. From the beginning, Neil appears as a bright student, he is engaged in a lot of activities within school and he is recognized as the leader of the group of students. But this character feels a deep contradiction between his own dreams and the ones his father has for him. He is going to fight again the morality of his parents following Mr Keating beliefs. We notice that Neil has a charismatic attitude towards the other students at the beginning of the movie â€Å"You say things and people listen†. He is the one who decided to re create the Dead Poets Society and used of his â€Å"power† to convince the other. He became more and more attracted to Keatings philosophy and acted as if it was a revelation for him. He is discovering a new state of mind through Keatings words and poetry and he is ready to listen to his feelings. The scene when Mr Perry enters in Neils room is quite relevant concerning the relationship between the two characters. Neil had decided to follow theater courses but he didnt advise his father. When Mr Perry find out, he orders his son to quit. At this instant, the illusions of Neil are falling apart and he cant express his feelings. He feels trapped and he acts as a child who did a mistake. Mr Perry uses the expression â€Å"absurd acting business† and refers to the deception he might have feel. He gives orders and Neil has no other choice than answering â€Å"Yes Sir† and crying. Mr Perry concludes with â€Å"You will not let me down†. We observe that the relationship is based on authority. The two characters are quite different: Mr Perry is cold, quiet and he hides his feelings and Neil is full of hopes and dreams with a deep emotional sensitivity. Mr Perry character refers to Mr Nolan one. He thinks that his way of thinking is the best for his son; he doesnt consider creativity, pleasure and feelings. Both characters express their power in the same way: they order, people have to follow. They dont let the opportunity to other to discuss and they are acting as if they were carrying the weight of the world on their shoulders. We also can say that this kind of character is complex because in away they are following their own beliefs, as Mr Keating does, and are convince its the right one. We have no doubts concerning the good intentions of Mr Perry to encourage his son to follow a medicine career. He thinks it is the best for his son to succeed. This kind of character has difficulty to â€Å"open up† the box and to extend the horizons. Two values can be differentiated concerning these characters that we will describe later: realism versus creativity. We also notice that after his conversation with his father, Neil goes to Keatings office to ask him for advice. Neil realized that the teacher always had a dream and that he is actually living for it. He expresses his feelings concerning his father â€Å"hes planning the rest of my life, he never asked me what I want†. Neil decides to not quit his role in the play and invites his friends and Mr Keating to watch him. Unfortunately, his father heard about it and comes to the theater. On stage, Neil talks to his father through the character he is playing and his last sentence in the play is â€Å"I have a dream†. The last interaction between Neil and his father takes place at home. Mr Perry is desolated, he accuses Neil to have defying him and to have run his life. At this time, we know that Mr Perry would never change his state of mind and will never allow his son to follow his own way. Mr Perrys refusal to support Neils acting aspirations ultimately lead to Neils death. Other personality and behavioural differences: the followers The movie is based on different characters and we will focus on this part on the evolution of the group of students through the leadership of others. Even if we saw that Neil for example was considered as a leader within the group, all the students are characterized as â€Å"followers† concerning or the leadership of Mr Keating or the authority power of Mr Nolan. The movie shows a lot of personality and behavioural differences concerning the characters. We can analyze the evolution of the characters in three times which correspond with the three classes of Mr Keating and we can focus especially on the influence of Mr Keating in their interactions. First of all, we have to remind that they all are part of the â€Å"tradition, honour, discipline, excellence† system. They grew up in this environment and their life has been predicted depending on these criteria. Their â€Å"model† is obviously Mr Nolan who is trusted by the entire community and also the teachers of the school. When Mr Keating introduced himself at the first class, they are all already prepared to receive a poetry class as they have been taught last years. Keating starts by asking them to open their book and to read the preface which sum up the poetry as a mathematical figure. Then he asked them to rip out the entire page. They are all shocked and dont know what to do because they know it goes against the system they are used to live in. Then, Keating asked them to get out of the class room and to look at the important figures of the school in the hall way. They are not either used to be taught outside of a class room. Most of them are wondering if its not a trap, no one is moving until one decides to do it. The rest follows. This attitude towards this new teacher is going to last during three classes. They dont dare to do something different, something which goes against their principles, to open up their perspectives and thats exactly what Keating tries to emphasize. But we notice that no one will directly be opposed to Keatings methods. They will all follow. They wait for someone to take the initiative, most of the time Neil. Someone who is recognized as their leader, they trust him. There is only one scene during the classes which shows that one student is opposed. At the third class, when Mr Keating asks his students to walk through the garden and to find their own way of walking, one student told Keating â€Å"you invite us to find our own freedom, Ive the freedom to not do it†.   But the others continue because they found their new leader, Mr Keating. Thus, we notice that the characters of the movie can be considered as a group: they are re creating the Dead Poet Society under Neils recommendation, they are united by a group, a secret society which they are all members of†¦ But in the same time, they are becoming less dependant on each other because they are all trying to find their own way. Their independence within the school is significant during the scene which shows two of them dancing on the sound of â€Å"Radio Free America† or when one of them declares â€Å"For the first time of my life, I know what I wanna do†. As we talked about in the characters description, all the students are differentiated by their own actions in the movie. At the beginning they are characterized by being students from the same school then they can be perceived as different individuals. Through Todd Anderson and Knox Overstreet characters, we can analyse the evolution of the characters. Todd Anderson is really shy and seems a bit younger than the others but he likes writing except that he doesnt have enough self confidence to do it. At the beginning, he is not able to stand up in front of the class and is always trying to hold Neil back from his desires. But at the end, he appears as the first one to show his opposition to Mr Nolan and to stand up on his table to show that he is grateful to Mr Keating. Knox Overstreet is a shy and academically focussed student at the beginning of the movie but influenced by Mr Keating he is going to listen to his feelings and to believe in himself. He will fall in love with a girl who is actually engaged and is decided to conquer her. Before kissing her for the fist time, he repeats to himself â€Å"carpe diem† and after telling his friends that he wrote her a poem, he says â€Å"She didnt say anything but at least I did it†. Besides, when the school is trying to accuse Mr Keating for being responsible for Neils death, we can note some different attitudes and behaviours. As we analysed before, their behaviours are linked to the notion of dependence or independence and its relevant to notice their different attitudes towards the institution at the end of the movie. All along the movie, these students formed a group. They have been influenced by Mr Keating, he was defined as their â€Å"mentor† and for some of them, their life changed considerably. As we saw, they were united by the Dead Poets Society and the beliefs of Mr Keating were ingraved in their mind. But at the end, under the pressure of Mr Nolan and their parents, they all betray their new principles and sign a paper which attests that Mr Keating had a bad influence on them and that he is the direct responsible of Neils death. Ironically, the only one who refuses it is Charlie Dalton, the only one who was opposed to Keatings exercise†¦ Their dependence to Welton academy is stronger that their dependence to Mr Keating and in this case, we can say that the Mr Nolans authoritarian model wins. The direct consequence on this is the break of their friendship. The group doesnt exist anymore because of the different attitudes they have towards Mr Keating or Mr Nolans influence. Different thematic 1. The power of a myth : a necessity to unit Welton Academy versus the Dead Poets Society Even if Welton School and the Dead Poets Society are perceived as two different â€Å"institutions† and are opposite by their beliefs; nevertheless they have a similarity: they both are based on strong values established a long time ago constituting a model for students. In this part, we will focus on the power of myths and we will establish a comparison between â€Å"tradition, honor, discipline, excellence† referring to Welton and â€Å"carpe diem† referring to the Dead Poets Society. Besides, we will see that in both cases, the myth is a necessity to unit. Welton Academy â€Å"tradition, honor, discipline, excellence† The story of the movie is set in Welton Academy in Vermont in 1959, a conservative and aristocratic preparatory school where education is understood to be a rigorous academic learning program combined with the shaping of the students characters according to explicitly traditionalist ideals. The movie begins with a processional march of the students into the main auditorium of the school, where teachers and parents are awaiting the address of Mr. Nolan, who inaugurates the new school year by reminding everyone of the high standards of the institution, and the schools high success rate in sending its graduates to Ivy League universities. Students carry banners on which are embroidered the four pillars of Weltons pedagogical program: Tradition, Honour, Discipline, and Excellence. The key to your success rests on our four pillars. These are the bywords of this school, and they will become the cornerstones of your lives. Most of the students at Welton are from respectable families; most are destined to follow in the footsteps of their fathers and become doctors, corporate lawyers, or bankers. Also it is really clear that Welton has a conservative spirit and is dedicated to give to the students its traditionalist way of thinking. The school represents tradition and the teaching methods are very established, which is opposed to the innovative and creative way of teaching of Mr Keating. Honor represents the renown that the school receives by placing a lot of students in elite universities. The institution is well known and prestigious; Mr Nolan has for role to maintain the reputation of the school and to keep high standards. He is only here to watch that the students are taught in a traditional way. Discipline means repression in Welton. Its goal is to establish a framework for the students by controlling them. In the movie, the respect of discipline is really important to insure uniform behaviour and the repression of the students individuality and creativity. Their personal desires cant exist without discipline. Welton has a lot of rules. Fist of all, the school is only for boys and girls are not allowed in the institution. The students have to wear a uniform and have to spend their free time to study. Some extra activities are planned but even being part of the redaction of the school newspaper is a lost of time for Neils father. The code is really strict and can be perceived as â€Å"old school† concerning the punishments. Concerning the â€Å"excellence†, it refers to not simply succeed in what you are doing but being the best and get the approbation of the institution. In the movie, we notice that it is more important to get good grades than understanding what the subject is about. The school is a preparatory school to get into prestigious universities and all parents are counting on Welton to make their child succeed. It doesnt matter how they are treated and if they are happy or not, they just have to be excellent and behave the way the institution is expected them to. As we saw in the movie, with Mr Keatings influence, most of them realize that they have desires but the school will not allow them to develop their instincts. The authority of Mr Nolan and the pressure of their parents emphasize the importance of academic studies to get a successful career and also to answer to their parents dreams. Also, they cant recognize excellence if it is out of the frame. Neil could be really good at acting but his father doesnt even take that into consideration. Welton is an institution based on a philosophy where tradition, honour, discipline and excellence are the key words. It is also a school where the self reflection, the personal development, the creativity, the non conformity†¦ are not recognized and not tolerated. Students nickname the school â€Å"Hellton†. Mr Nolan, model of authority and obedience, represents the traditionalism and the conservatism of Welton: an institution opposed to the individualism of Mr Keating and the Dead Poets Society philosophy. The Dead Poets Society â€Å"Carpe Diem† One day, Neil finds an old yearbook with Mr. Keating in it. After seeing that Mr. Keating listed Dead Poets Society as one of his activities, the boys ask Mr. Keating what this was. He replies that the Dead Poets Society was dedicated to taking â€Å"the meaning out of life†. To do so, the members would sit in an â€Å"old Indian cave† near a certain pond and in the enchantment of the moment . . . let poetry work its magic. When Knox has doubts about a bunch of guys just sitting around reading poetry, Keating claims that they were not just a Geek organization, that they were romantics, that they didnt just read poetry. Spirits soared, women swooned and gods were created, gentlemen† That evening, under Neils leadership, the boys reconvene the Dead Poets Society. Neil honors tradition by opening the new chapter of the society the way Keating and his classmates used to open it, by reading the passage from Henry David Thoreau. â€Å"I went to the woods because I wanted to live deliberately I wanted to live deep and suck out all the narrow of life To put to rout all that was not life And not when I had come to die Discover that I had not lived† This first meeting of the renewed society is a tremendous success. The boys really get into reading poetry, including the concluding lines from Tennysons Ulysses, which Neil reads and which, in the context of the movie as a special significance. â€Å"Come my friends, its not too late to seek a newer world† We can notice at this time that Neil is completely influenced by Mr Keating character and curious about The Dead Poets Society. When he starts reciting poetry, he seems to have discovered a new way of thinking, it is a revelation for him. The words that he pronounces have an echo in himself. The Dead Poets Society is also the link between the past and the present which makes the students think about their future. It is also a way for them to avoid their parents values that are really heavy: it gives them the opportunity to have a special time to avoid constraints which create a strong link between all of them. Now the group of students is united by this secret. This intimacy allows them to act on their own, they are using it as a way to know all the things which are forbidden inside the school. They are smoking, drinking, playing music or bringing girls. We can say that they are experimenting the pleasures of life which give a real sense for Keating and which represent the devil for Mr Nolan. Also, we observe that tradition, honor, discipline, and excellence are represented in having taken the initiative to reconvene the Dead Poets Society, despite the fact that the school would not look too favourably upon it. Furthermore, The Dead Poets Society which could represent a place of decadence for Welton Academy is illustrating the values that Mr Keating is believing in. It refers to one of the first sentence he pronounces in class â€Å"Life exists and identity†. We see all along the movie that the Dead Poets Society will take more and more importance in the students life and that it will become their creed. â€Å"I promise. The Dead Poets Society is my word† 2. Mr Keatings vision â€Å"Carpe Diem, seize the day† is the phrase that the movie is focusing on and is reflecting the vision of Mr Keating, an   English teacher who has just been hired, and who displays ideas and a spirit that deviate sharply from the established Welton practices and norms. Keating propagates an anti-authoritarian philosophy of life and he will soon profile himself as the provocative and inspiring educator of the students of whom he is in charge. During his very first class session Keating demonstrates that he is not just there to convey academic information, but also to show what students can do with such knowledge in their everyday lives. The first class session is, indeed, not so much a lesson in English literature, but a dramatic philosophical wake-up call. â€Å"Word and images can change the world† â€Å"The human race is filled with passion† Examining some poetry lines, Mr Keating interpolates his students Why does the poet write these lines?. He answers Because we are food for worms, la

Identification Of Poisonous And Non Poisonous Snake

Identification Of Poisonous And Non Poisonous Snake INTRODUCTION Snakes are one of the most interesting reptilian creatures of earth. They are interesting as for the purpose of study as well as research and that is so because of the one character they possess in them and that is there Poison which is called by the name of Venom. Unlike all reptile snakes are poisonous but not all of them. A few species among them failed to obtain that character. This venom act as both useful weapon as well as defense shield against its pray and enemy. The snake venom is a hazardous protein and characterized by very complex compositions. It is slimy egg-like viscous liquid having slightly fishy smell. It is the complex set of harmful toxicants as well as proteins. Other than toxicants and proteins the snake venom contains several peptides, amino acids, carbohydrates, lipids, nucleosides, biological amines and metal ions, which make it even more complex than other normal proteins. Venom contains more than 20 kinds of enzymes and toxins, but the main ingredients of the venom are toxic proteins. The toxic component present in snake venom varies according to the snake species or even the venom secreted by the same snake in different season may also vary. This changes the characteristic of different snake venom and decides its role in pharmacological, toxicological and medical field. Snake venom mainly consists of neurotoxins, cardiotoxins, toxins that cause blood clotting, bleeding toxins (that stops the blood clotting and blood remains to flow continuously even after injury), harmful enzymes and other major components. The cytotoxic venom is more effective than the neurotoxic type venom, and it will work almost immediately to the prey such as the mouse and frogs. Although the snakes are very calm and hideous animals (except a few ones) yet mortality rate associated with the snakebites is a serious public health problem in almost all the region of the world, especially in rural areas where medical facilities are low or absent. In India, majority of bites and mortality are due to King cobra, Naja naja, Daboia Russelli Russells viper, Bangarus caeruleus (common krait) and Echis carinatus (saw-scaled viper). [1.1] Frequency of snake bite About 35,000 to 50,000 people reportedly die of snake bite in India every year; however, the unreported cases may be more in rural India. Estimated snake bites and (death) cases were reported as 25,000(30) in Europe; 6 20,000(100) in Middle East; 45,000(15) in USA and Canada; 3,00,000( 5,000) in Central and South America; 10,00,000(20,000) in Africa; 40,00,000 (1,00,000) in Asia; 10,000 (200) in Oceania all total worldwide 5 million ( 1,25,000). Death incidence due to snake bite is rather rare in Australia, Europe and North America but frequent in South Asia, South-East Asia and Sub-Sahar an Africa. In Zimbabwe on 274 cases studied, 4 out of 5 3, 6, 7 children died who are under 8 years old. [1.2] Identification of poisonous and non-poisonous snake (source:www.buzzle.com//venomous-snake-identification-identifying-poisonous-snakes.html) Poisonous snakes generally possess the characters like Vertically elliptical shaped cat like pupil. A small depression (termed pit) between the eyes and nostrils. Triangle shaped head e.g. Copperheads and rattle snakes, exception- Elapids. Underside scales of tail go completely all the way across in a single row from the anal plate; the very tip of the tail may possess two scale rows. Head and body both are seen during swimming time. Generally of multiple colors. In contrast, non-poisonous snakes generally possess the characters like: Round pupil in the center of eye. U shaped head. Two rows of scales from the vent to the tail end. Only head is seen during swimming time. Generally of one color. Mostly stripes are from head to tail. [1.3] Utility of Snake Venom Snake venoms are used to control heart diseases, high blood pressure, cancer (contortrostain produced by Agkistrodon contortrix- is cytostatic in nature and found to lower the growth rate of breast cancer in mice), tumor, polio, neurological disorders (enzymes from cobra venom were found to cure Parkinson s and Alzheimers diseases), excessive bleeding (a blood clotting protein in Taipan venom stop bleeding during surgery or after major trauma), blood clotting (ancrod obtained from Malyan pit viper, used to develop angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors to treat stroke victims), severe allergies amongst others. Other interesting areas of snake venom include the treatment of viruses (as venom contain phospholipidases which break down cell membrane), aging and some are even used in commercial wrinkle cream! [1.4] Phospholipase-A2 Phospholipase A2 is one of the most intensively studied membrane proteins which hydrolyze phospholipids at the sn-2 position to form fatty acid and lysophospholipid products. These are small proteins and the 3-D structures are known to high resolution for several species. Phospholipase A2 proteins are of high pharmaceutical concern since they are responsible for the release of arachidonic acid from membranes, and since the subsequent conversion of this fatty acid to leukotrienes and prostaglandins is part of the inflammatory response. The enzyme also shows very interesting interactions with the membrane on which it binds. It is activated in some way when it interacts with aggregated forms of the substrate, such as in micelles or in bilayers. Electrostatic and hydrophobic interactions are suspected to be involved in the binding of the enzyme to the membrane. Very little is known of the enzyme-membrane complex structure and why the enzyme reacts much more efficiently once it binds its substrates in an aggregated form. The phospholipid molecule consists of a glycerol-3-phosphate (blue colour) esterified at its sn-1 and sn-2 positions to non-polar fatty acids (R1 and R2, respectively) and at its phosphoryl group to a polar head group, X. Phospholipase A1 and phospholipase A2 cleave the acyl ester bonds at sn-1 and sn-2, respectively. Phospholipase C cleaves the glycerophosphate bond whereas phospholipase D removes the head group, X. PLA, phospholipase A; PLC, phospholipase C; PLD, phospholipase D. Phospholipases2.png Fig-1.1: Phospholipase A2 Structure [1.5] Phospholipase-A2 (PLA2) Activity After entering inside the body of human being venom containing PLA2 enzyme start affecting the cell membranes of almost all the cell organelles. Since cell organelles containing cell membrane are made up of phospholipids, hence this this phospholipids act as a reactant for phospholipase a2 and start reacting with it. This phospholipase a2 tends to form arachidonic acid which has an inflammatory sensation and this arachidonic acid further converted into PGG2 by using cyclooxygenases. This PGG2 further transcribed into PGH2 which forms 3 basic compounds PGD2, PGF2, and PGE2. On the basis of the ester bond that is cleaved within a phospholipid molecule, phospholipases are grouped into four families, namely A, B, C and D. Phospholipase A enzymes cleave the acyl ester bond at either the sn-1 (phospholipase A1) or sn-2 (phospholipase A2) position (Figure 1). The Whoterm phospholipase B is given to phospholipases that hydrolyze acyl ester bonds at both sn-1 and sn-2 positions. Enzymes grouped under phospholipase C cleave the glycerophosphate bond, while phospholipase D enzymes remove the polar head group. C:UsersAMITDesktopFINAL PROJECTicb200456f1.gif Fig-1.2:Activity Chain of Phospholipase A2 inside Cell Membrane Phospholipase A2 is being suppressed by Lipocortins which is also known as Annexin. In human Annexin the common cellular protein is found inside the cell. However outside the cell the annexin is also found inside the blood because they are transported out of the cell into the blood. This is because of the lack of a signal peptide necessary for protein to be transported out of the cell. Since there are different dataset had been already prepared but could not found the IC50 value, due to which the working on this dataset could not be carried out further. [1.6] Quantitative Structure Analysis Relationship (QSAR) QSAR plays an important role in lead structure optimization and it can be predicted that QSAR method will become essential for handling the huge amount of data associated with combinatorial chemistry. 3D-QSAR has already been successfully applied to many data sets of enzyme and receptor ligands. The biological activity of molecules is usually measured in assays to establish the level of inhibition of particular signal transduction or metabolic pathways. Chemicals can also be biologically active by being toxic. Drug discovery often involves the use of QSAR to identify chemical structures that could have good inhibitory effects on specific targets and have low toxicity (non-specific activity). Of special interest is the prediction of Log P, which is an important measure used in identifying drug-likeness according to Lipinskis Rule of Five. While many Quantitative Structure Activity Relationship analyses [9] involve the interactions of a family of molecules with an enzyme or receptor bi nding site, QSAR can also be used to study the interactions between the structural domains of proteins. As in the article Structural modeling extends QSAR analysis of antibody-lysozyme interactions to 3D-QSAR, protein-protein interactions can be quantitatively analyzed for structural variations resulted from site-directed mutagenesis. In this study, a wild-type antibody specific for lysozyme and 17 single and double mutants of the antibody were investigated. Quantitative models for the affinity of the antibody-antigen interaction were developed. [1.6.1] 3D-QSAR The 3D-QSAR methods have been developed to improve the prediction accuracies of 2D methods. 3D methods are computationally more complex and demanding than 2D approaches. In general, there are two families of 3D-QSAR methods: alignment-dependent methods and alignment-independent methods. Both families need experimentally or computationally derived bioactive conformations of ligands as templates for studies. QSAR study revealed that alignment- independent descriptor and distance- based topology index are the most important descriptor in predicting apoptosis- inducing activity. 3D-QSAR study was performed using k-nearest neighbor molecular field analysis (kNN-MFA) approach for both electrostatic and steric fields. Three different kNN-MFA 3D- QSAR methods (SW-FB, SA, and GA) were used for the development of models and tested successfully for internal (q2>0.62) and external (predictive r2> 0.52) validation criteria. Thus, 3D- [1.7] Objectives To retrieve the three- dimensional coordinates of protein and known active molecules against phospholipase-A2. To generate significant three-dimensional Quantitative Structure Activity Relationship model from active molecules. To analyze protein-ligand interaction of known actives against phospholipase-A2 molecular docking studies. To identify important scaffold of compound and their structural modification with helps in designing new molecules with improve activities.

The Two Towns of Jasper :: essays research papers

Race in America: Is it really such a problem now as it was so many years ago? I think my generation of young adults is reaping the 1st benefits of a â€Å"racist free† society, and I put racist free society in quotations because our society may never truly be without some form of racism because I believe that hate for another race or culture is seeded in our youth at a very early age, and that our kids our taught, in a sense, to hate by their parents words, actions, sayings, jokes, beliefs, etc and are made to think that that kind of offensiveness is ok, and thus grow up with that racism growing into racial hatred.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The clan markings and tattoos these men had tells me that they belong to a â€Å"gang† or group dedicated to racial hatred. I guarantee you that these men as children had no idea what racism was until someone taught it to them, from there it branched off into their individual view of who is superior and who is not.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  I personally have a lot of friends of different races, but I don’t see them like that. I see them for who they are and what their personality is like, not by color. And I think that society is gradually leaning in that direction as well. Maybe it was because I wasn’t raised to see color like other people do, maybe it has to do with the fact that my family moved around a lot and I made friends with whoever I could, racial issues not being a factor. These are just my view points and others may have a completely different perspective on color and race. But it is very difficult for me to write about some thing such as racism, when to me the term has no meaning except what has been taught to me about what other people say and do.

Working to Stop the Slaughter :: College Admissions Essays

Working to Stop the Slaughter    Gunfire kills 30,000 Americans every year. Gunfire disproportionately kills the young. Fifteen to twenty-four-year-olds are far more likely to die in gun murders and accidents than the average American. (Center for Disease Control) People in their early twenties are also more likely to use a gun to take their own life. In 1998, gun violence killed 4,476 18 to 22 year olds. In other words, gunfire kills 13 people in our age group every day. Every day, students like us mourn friends, classmates, siblings, and childhood playmates who died from gun violence. We have volunteered our time in schools where students struggle to learn because of the preoccupying threat of gunfire. Duck and cover has made a comeback. Our generation is learning to cower under our desks- not in fear of Soviet bombs but in fear of neighborhood arsenals. There are common sense solutions that work in Canada and Europe. Our elected leaders compound the daily tragedy when they choose not to act.    All it takes is some common sense. We can start by treating guns more like cars. Guns are exempt from the product safety regulations that govern everything from automobiles to power mowers to teddy bears. The gun industry, like any other industry, needs to take responsibility for the risks it creates. A government investigation helped prompt the Firestone recall. No government agency has similar responsibilities to investigate and respond to defective guns. Gun buyers have responsibilities as well. People who own dangerous products, like cars and guns, have the responsibility to learn to operate them safely and get a license.    Generations of college students have spoken out against injustice. Their efforts forced change. Students took to the streets to call for an end to the Vietnam war. The Freedom Riders spearheaded the civil rights movement. Our age group bears the brunt of the gun violence epidemic. When guns kill 30,000 Americans a year while Congress stands by and does nothing, it is time for our generation to speak up. We need to tell the stories of the people behind the statistics -- the lives full of hope and promise cut short by gunfire.

The Opportunities for Excellence :: Philosophy of Teaching Education Essays

The Opportunities for Excellence Like many other students in the public school system, I had my share of â€Å"good† teachers and â€Å"bad† teachers, but I learned valuable things from each of them: from the â€Å"good† teachers, inspiration to enter education and how to be a good teacher, from the â€Å"bad† teachers, if nothing else, what not to be. As important as education is to children’s success in life, they should have as many positive influences as possible. I will strive to be the best teacher I can be, not only to be marked as one of the â€Å"good†, but one of the â€Å"great† teachers of education. As a student, I found the â€Å"good† teachers to be those that went the extra mile to help children fulfill individual interests. Sponsorship of clubs and organizations, home visits, etc. have been traditional methods of supplementing education, but computers and the Internet have given rise to many new avenues, such as e-mail correspondence and more powerful, contemporary research information. Recent coordination of colleges and high schools has also provided students interested in attending college the opportunity to advance their pursuits in continued education by allowing them to correlate their high school classes with the college curriculum for dual credit. I will use these tools, along with many others, to heighten the educational experience for my students. I also recall my â€Å"good† teachers as moral role models. Their upstanding character, fairness and general nature were reflected in their students, as will the traits of future teachers for many years to come. Also, the trend continues for children to have less and less influence at home, be it due to non-traditional families, both parents working, etc. Even more, a greater diversity of classroom ethnicity introduces a broader set of values, and further challenges teachers to be open to other cultures. They are also given the responsibility of enculturation, conveying the appreciation of other cultures to their students. This can amount to as little as contribution and additive methods, appending other cultures’ ideas into core philosophy, to as much as transformation or social action, integrating other cultures into the curriculum as part of the norm. All of these factors leave a greater weight of shaping children’s mindset on teachers. As an upcoming educator, I feel a great responsibility to maintain respectability and general good character as a positive example for my students.

Indian Essay Essay

Throughout American culture, racism and stereotypes have been prevalent, yet the Disney movie Pocahontas is an attempt to better understand racial intolerance towards Native Americans. Though the movie is not completely historically accurate, the context of it portrays a more truthful story of the first European and Native American encounters which were mostly hostile ones, contrary to the modern American belief of â€Å"Thanksgiving† like events. However, there were attempts of understanding each other’s cultures and beliefs which can be displayed in the Disney movie through the interactions of characters, Captain John Smith and Pocahontas. While symbolism is present throughout the movie, Disney uses combinations of music, colors, and lighting along with metaphorical character interaction, to play on viewers emotions in order to better understand the struggles and hardships felt by both Europeans and Native Americans during their early encounters. The history between Native Americans and Europeans has not always been a positive one. As seen in the movie the British settlers voyage off towards the new world in search of large amounts of gold, but in reality the British desired the vast amounts of â€Å"untouched† land. Since most children do not understand the value of land, Disney uses the rewards of gold and riches in order to explain the British motives for coming to the Americas to the children audience. When the British arrive in the movie they are shown eager to seek to destroy anything that comes in their path that is not valuable, with minimal care for the land or the people that inhabit it, those being the Native Americans. During these scenes there are very dark colors and lights along with intense music to show the British mindset during these times. This is where the difference between the two cultures seems to become prevalent. The Europeans were at a point in their culture where conquering and colonizing is all they desired, and natives were mere obstacles in their way. They used destructive ways and tactics to scare the Native American people. While the British were on a path of destruction, the Native Americans are shown living a very peaceful and spiritual life, not only living off the land but using it to its full capacity. This harmonious relationship between Natives and the land is shown during the â€Å"Colors of the Wind† scene where Pocahontas takes John Smith on a romantic and spiritual ourney of the land while singing a very passionate song describing the Natives relationship with nature. The use of a very colorful but yet organic spectrum of colors and lights along with the peaceful and loving music serve to help convey the Natives beliefs to the audience. This also shows how the Natives lived with nature and felt that they are no more important to it than the plants and organisms that also lived there. The native’s efficient use of the land and its resources are the reason why the land in the Americas looked untouched to the European settlers. These two extremely different views of life along with a communication barrier (which is partially displayed in the movie) are the reason why it was so difficult for the two sides to lived The movie attempts to ease racial tensions by presenting both main characters in an omniscient light. When John Smith (who can be seen as a metaphor for European beliefs at the time) and Pocahontas (who can be seen as representation of the native’s beliefs and lifestyle) first encounter one another they do not know what to think. When she sees him behind the waterfall she slowly moves towards him being as precautious as possible knowing that they come from very different background. As the movie goes on you see them slowly start to fall in love with each which shows an understanding of each other and their different beliefs and morals, which would allow for a possibility of a peaceful coexistence of both sides. The love between John Smith and Pocahontas invokes the viewer to wonder what it would be like presently if Europeans and Native Americans were welcoming of each other instead of hostile. However, this fantasy is inevitably destroyed by reality, when the extremes on both sides clash in violence and death is the result. This plays on the viewer’s emotions creating a hatred towards both extremes for destroying something that could have been beautiful. By doing this Disney is able to manipulate the audience’s emotions by making them feel regretful for what had happened in the past. Disney’s attempt to help youth understand the basic Native American culture and their morals by making the movie Pocahontas, in my opinion was a success. Although it’s not entirely historically accurate the movie is able to get a broad sense of how events unfolded during early European-Native American encounters to its intended audience of children. By using different colors, music, and lighting in combination with the metaphorical character interaction, Disney is able to take it a step further than just understanding what happened, by leaving the viewer with a sense of sorrow toward the past and dreaming about what could have been.

Mrs. Walters

Throughout my stay my mom was consistently dirty, and the bathroom fixtures were rusty. Additionally, I had to request fresh towels each evening of my stay. To make matters worse, the casino was extremely loud and the music did not stop until 3 A. M. I complained to the Front Desk Manager, Rail Rodriguez, and requested another room but was told there were no other rooms available. No one from the hotel addressed my concerns and I was told repeatedly that housekeeping had been alerted to my complaints. Despite my repeated complaints, my room was never properly cleaned and was never furnished with fresh towels.Because of the casino noise, I was unable to sleep comfortably for two nights. Hence, my time spent In Puerco Rice was nerve-wracking. The cost of a room with a king sized bed and an ocean view, at the time of my booking, was $190 per night and I stayed for 3 nights. In Dalton, a resort charge of 20% was added to my bill. As this accommodation was prepaid through expelled. Com, I was told that I could not request a refund at the hotel. Considering that I made several complaints that were documented and showed patience In walling for the situations to be Improved, I am writing to request that I be refunded the cost of my accommodation.The customer service for this branch needs to be Improved. The Front Desk Manager should be more sensitive to the needs of your guests. Additionally, housekeeping routines should be consistent. It Is extremely distressing for a traveler to experience such poor service. With this In mind, I think It only reasonable for your company to refund the cost for my stay at you San Juan hotel. Sincerely, Mrs.. Walters By [email  protected] Com San Juan, Puerco Rice, 00785 I am a frequent traveler but this is the first time I have stayed in your San Juan hotel. Two nights. Hence, my time spent in Puerco Rice was nerve-wracking.The cost of a per night and I stayed for 3 nights. In addition, a resort charge of was added to my bill. As thi s accommodation was prepaid through expedited. Com, I was told that I that were documented and showed patience in waiting for the situations to be improved, I am writing to request that I be refunded the cost of my accommodation. The customer service for this branch needs to be improved. The Front Desk Manager routines should be consistent. It is extremely distressing for a traveler to experience such poor service. With this in mind, I think it only reasonable for your company to

Single Families: the Struggle to Survive

There are roughly around 6 billion people in the world or there were as of 2009 and for every 1000 people about 5 are divorced, over 13 million american women alone are widowed, and many people are just single. So me by choice others by circumstance but the truth of the matter is that over 20% of families worldwide are single parent run homes. How do these people live? Many in poverty and a grand majority of them live in the middle to low class ranks of society.Many of us believe the economy sucks, our lives suck, we think we've got it bad but we should see how some of these people live. How does one get by surviving in a paycheck by paycheck manner? How do you pay bills and eat? Many of these questions do have answers, lets start with a question: How do we deal with educating the children of single parents? 1. Education In the past, if someone had a child that was it, their main focus was raising and providing for that child regardless of the kind education that they had.Those paren ts didn’t have much of a choice but to join the workforce immediately to put food on the table and continuing an education was more of a luxury. Many in society viewed this issue to be more of a personal matter rather than a social concern. Views about this have changed with the rapid increase of single parent households growing to a staggering 13. 7 million in the United States. (Grall) One place where we can see evidence of people becoming more aware of the importance of single parents is in education.It is not a little known fact that a quality education can improve conditions for those who seek it and single parents are not an exception to that rule. That is one of the reasons why we have seen more local, state and national governments and organizations offer financial assistance to those single parents who wish to continue their education. In a joint study conducted by the University of Illinois and Washington University that examined the effects of postsecondary educati on on the economic well being of single parents, the results were not surprising.The study found through a series of analysis that â€Å"single parents with postsecondary education, especially those with 4-year college degrees, had significantly higher labor income and house values and were less likely to live in poverty than those with a high school degree or less than a high school degree. † (Zhan, and Pandey 661-673) Unfortunately, the study did find that only 31% of mothers and 41% of fathers had any type of college education. Even more astounding was that of those single parents with a college education only 8% of mothers and 17% of fathers had college degrees(Zhan, and Pandey 661-673).This study shows the magnitude that investing an education has on single parents to empower themselves, increase their financial earning power and to dedicate resources to promote educational opportunities for single parents. Of course because the single parent’s case is more unique than that of the common student, the need for financial assistance such as scholarships and grants are necessary. With the costs of college tuition continuing to soar, scholarships for single parents are extremely important.Scholarships are designed to pay for higher education such as college, graduate school or some type of professional school. Obtaining a scholarship is the best way to avoid some if not all of the tuition fees and unlike loans, (which will be discussed later) scholarships do not require the recipient to pay those funds back. Scholarships are not normally meant to provide any income beyond a student's higher education expenses. While there are thousands of scholarships offered, they are mainly split into two types, school sponsored scholarships that award funds based on academic performance or private scholarships.Private scholarships can be granted to support a student pursuing a certain field of study or can even be given because the student is a member of a cer tain race, gender or religion. In the case of single parents, there are special organizations such as Raise the Nation that awards scholarships to single mothers. What makes Raise the Nation so unique is that not only does it provide scholarship money to the parents to use for their education; it also provides funds for daycare for their children. Of course, certain criteria such as GPA and community involvement are necessary to receive support. Raise the Nation) Some communities have begun to offer scholarships to qualifying single parents as well. One state that has really stepped up is Arkansas. In 1990, Arkansas established the Arkansas Single Parent Scholarship Fund The success rate of Arkansas’ program is astounding; of the 1,150 beneficiaries in 2006 75% are continuing their education or used the scholarship money to complete their degree. Even better news is that looking back on the previous six years, the graduation rate of single mothers that benefited from the Arka nsas Single Parent Scholarship Fund was around 75%. ASPSF 2006 Annual Report). This type of model that Arkansas has laid down can especially be beneficial to single parents in other states. The idea of a community based scholarship fund designed to encourage single parents who yearn for a higher education is something that many people would welcome. Unfortunately, a scholarship program similar to that of Arkansas could not be found at the federal level. However, single parents can take advantage of federal grants, one grant being the Pell Grant.While the Pell Grant is not exclusive to single parents, the program is arranged to help out students with low incomes. Whether or not a student will receive the Pell Grants depends on the Expected Family Contribution , or EFC. The EFC is based on the information that is entered by the student in their Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, form. (Federal Pell Grant Program 90) Generally speaking, the lower the EFC score the high er amount that the student will receive in financial aid and the Pell Grant.Some of the factors that help a single parent get more aid include, low income, fewer assets and also because many single parents claim Head of Household on their income taxes. Like scholarships, grants do not need to be paid back. With that being said it is the sole responsibility of the student to use these funds wisely. The 1992 Reauthorization of the Higher Education Act (HEA-92) was a great step forward for all students who sought financial aid. This act made it easier for students who were turned down before to obtain funds for their schooling.The HEA-92 has been heralded as a monumental moment in the history of federal financial aid because it really was focused on supporting postsecondary education. While many groups were willing and able to take advantage of this act, one group’s numbers declined, that group was single parents. In a study that was conducted by The US Department of Education, Single parents who received financial aid declined from 94% in 1990 to a grim 79% by 2000. One theory as to why the big plunge is being blamed on the fact that the EFC for single parents had increased from $800 to $1,300 even though it decreased for almost everyone else. Hartle 19-21) What this meant was that more single parents now had to join the workforce to not only provide for their families, but to pay for their education. With the HEA 92 in place, single parents who really wanted to continue their education had to seek other methods to get money which came in the form of Stafford Loans. Stafford Loans are available directly from the US Department of Education. There are two types of loans that are popular among students, subsidized and unsubsidized loans. The difference between the two has to do the interest that is being charged on the loan.The interest on the subsidized loan is paid by the federal government while the student is attending school. Also during the students en rollment, the do not have to make payments on the loan until the student graduates. Unsubsidized loans begin to accrue interest from the time that the loan is paid out to the school and the student is responsible for that interest. To obtain both of these loans, the student must be enrolled at least half time. (Stafford Loan) These types of loans can be beneficial to single parents who must work to make ends meet at home and want to go to school also.Even after the single parent has finished their studies and are on their way to a rewarding career, they can still qualify for loan forgiveness. Loan forgiveness programs are being offered from an employer and other organizations. For instance, if you are a teacher, you might agree to teach in an impoverished area in exchange for loan deferment. If you teach for the agreed period of time, your loan is then forgiven. With the availability of scholarships, loans and grants, single parents can improve their educational prospects for themse lves and their families.While our society is not necessarily exactly where we would all want it to be, one can be hopeful that future social policies that promote educational opportunities for single parents will increase. Education is important for single parents and their children. There are many educational programs for this reason. To assist single parents in their parenting, places like school districts, churches and non-profits provide classes to educate them on parenting skills such as meal preparation, food budgeting, emergencies, etc. These classes not only help educate, but they also help with emotional needs.The website ericdigests. org describes programs that aid parents in literacy, counseling, job placement and college education. There are also programs for the children of single parents. Some organizations have programs that involve education and scholarships where children can take month long courses that vary from the areas of arts to computers to sports. Some of th e most significant programs for single parents are college programs. It is often necessary for single parents to have college education in order to obtain jobs that will support their family.Endicott College has a program called Keys to Degrees which is for single men and women between the ages of 18 and 24 who have young children. This program enables them to take advantage of the opportunity to attain undergraduate degrees while being provided with campus housing and other support coinciding with their specific needs. Wilson College has a program called Women with Children that provides yearly housing to mothers with children any age over 20 months. This allows the women to pursue a fulltime education. Other colleges have similar Women with Children programs, but have different requirements.Misericordia University’s Women with Children program has less requirements and offers their programs to women of all ages with no restrictions on the age or amount of children the woman has. Saint Paul’s College has a Single Parent Support System program. Parents desiring to be a part of this program must have two or less children between the ages of 2 months and 9 years and must maintain a GPA of 2. 5. If they are able to fulfill the requirements they are provided with yearly housing allowing them to pursue a fulltime education and obtain a degree within three to four years.Most colleges have online programs that allow single parents to get their college education at home where they can still care for their children. These are just a few of the college programs available to single parents, there are a plethora of others. These programs have high value to single parents. Along the lines of education, it is a common belief that the grades of most children of single parents are not as high as those of children with two parents. This has been proven. Research has shown that children of single parents are likely to have lower IQs than those who have two parents .Research has also shown that single parent children are more likely to drop out of school, three times more likely. It is possible that one of the reasons for lower academic achievements in children of single parents is that the parents spend less time with their children, discipline in a less consistent manor and have less control over their children than two parents together. Single parents are often working more than two parents to support their children which results in less time spent with children and less involvement in their life.It has been proven that children with parents who are less involved in their life and education are more likely to have lower academic achievement. Income is another risk factor and because single parents don’t have the support of another person, it is possible for them to make less money. Research shows when single parent families receive child support, the children are more likely to have higher academic achievement than children of famili es that don’t receive child support. An interesting fact is that children in mother absent homes get lower science grades than those in father absent homes.Overall single parent children find it more difficult to connect with school. Since single parents have less time to spend with their children, care for their children while they work is necessary. Some day care programs are educational and run through the schools of the children. Programs like Kids Club are after school programs that can assist single parents. Some Kids Club programs are free while others charge five dollars per day. They are open every day and some schools keep the programs running through summer.Children can go right after school since the program is on campus and parents can pick their children up around six at night. Though these programs are not specifically for single parents, they are extremely useful for single parents. They allow the parent to complete their work day without having to worry about their child and the child can participate in activities, some of which are learning experiences. 2. US Government In 1996 Congress proposed a new policy titled â€Å"Temporary Assistance to Needy Families† in response to the failed AFDC program by implementing work requirements and time limits for recipients.Bill Clinton signed the new law hoping it would move more people off the welfare rolls and into the work force to alleviate both the burden of government spending on welfare and to bolster the economy. Many people opposed the new legislation out of fear that it would wreak havoc in our nation’s cities, and many innocent children would suffer and ultimately be exploited. Opponents were quoted saying â€Å"it would liken our streets to those of Brazil†¦Ã¢â‚¬  The effects of the TANF policy have been hard to determine. In a study conducted 10 years after the 1996 reform policy, shows a stark contrast to the years of the AFDC.Caseloads declined and a majority o f recipients have gone on and have been removed off the welfare rolls, though they still receive subsidy care such as housing, child care, food assistance and health insurance. Many are actively engaged in the workforce and what was predicted by welfare reform opponents never came to pass. Teen pregnancy, a huger predictor of welfare dependency has slowly begun to decline. Critics agree that though case load decline is impressive it is not an accurate indicator of welfare reform success.They feel success would be measured by the amount of people getting off welfare rolls, into the work place and no longer in need of government subsidy programs including housing, food, and medical assistance. But the reality is a majority of the recipients leaving the welfare rolls are still reliant on those programs to stay just above the poverty line. In the end we find it hard to determine whether or not the welfare program has helped people stay above the poverty level or has actually kept them f rom moving forward.Living in America can be a great blessing to almost anyone that is either naturally born American or migrates to the states for better life. In foreign countries, many people wish they lived the â€Å"American Dream† life that is so well spoken of. Although the media portrays it to be easily achievable, it is not. It can be obvious to some that living any type of â€Å"good life† can take a lot of hard work and commitment to achieve it. Unfortunately, many American families break on their journey to achieve the infamous dream. For whatever reason the family might break, it usually is left with some types of dilemmas.The most popular dilemma of them all is the financial problems it gets left with, especially for the single parent who is left in charge of the children. Now a days it’s not only the women who are left in charge of the children after a divorce, statistics show more and more fathers are left with the care of their broken family. And the majority is left stuck in a financial nightmare that leaves them with no choice but to seek some type of help, and typically the number one choice is government aid. Government programs tend to give families a bad reputation.It singles the family out into the helpless status, working class part of society. Although America insists that we are a classless society, it can be proven false. Society tends to consciously and subconsciously label every person, every family into some sort of class. Some of the American society has been known to believe that government help is the best thing America has; yet, a lot of people think vice versa. Bottom line is that thanks to all the different types of aid there is out there, it has definitely helped out all types of families struggling to make everyday ends meet.Just like all things, there will be people out there who do make a good living, yet some tend to lie their way into getting the aid they say they need. These types of programs were not created with any intention to make a family dependant on it. They were made to help. People who abuse the help is never right, but it shouldn’t affect the people who are seeking the help they need for the right reason in a negative way that society portrays it to be. There is a long list of government programs. On example is the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) or the TANF Bureau.According to â€Å"http://ezinearticles. com/? Government-Grants-For-Single-Parents&id=2673848†, it is a program that offers government grants for single parents so that their children can be properly taken care of in a home environment. Plus it assists single parents' in developing job skills and building strong family units. Another form of single parent government grant is the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF). The CCDF is a nationwide assistance program that is administrated by state governments.Each state has their own unique eligibility requirement, so a singl e parent must apply through their local town or county social service department. Both of these are popular choices single families tend to seek for, and according to their personal experiences, it has helped them out immensely. At the end of the day, there are families who regrettably cannot support their family the way they wish they could. Some of them have extenuating circumstances that leaves them with no choice but to ask for the help. Again, no program is perfect anywhere one looks.It does not matter whether it is in a well-developed country or not. There will always be something or someone who will unwillingly turn something positive into a negative. 3. International The united states has its share of hardships but how are situations like this dealt with in different countries. we researched two countries other than the united states, one a third world country the other a more middle class civilized country. Italy has always been a coun try of my interest since it is my coun try of origin, so that is the one I chose to research.Italy is known for their romance not they're high rate of single parent families in fact italy has one of the lowest rates in Europe. In fact the amount of single parent households in italy has remained unchanged . the families counted might even be the ones counted the first time around. SInce 1971 there have been repot of 467,000 single parent households in italy. The european government has established a few programs to help single parents overcome the financial burden of raising a child. One of which is called REMO(reciprocal enforcement of maintenance orders).This is used only in situations where the partner lives outside whichever country one lives in. They too have child support and programs such as the ESA(employment and support agency) in case of a disability these people help you stay on track. They also have job grants an tax free money that they give to parents receiving benefits for one or ore children. Italy as well as other european countries are far more advanced than places such as Africa. They have the same benefits or almost the same help for single parents as we do here. Being a single parent is hard for anybody; however, living on virtually othing in a country with hardly any income can cause some seriously detrimental issues. South Africa has some of the highest rates of divorce, single parenthood, and poverty in the world. These horrendous hardships combined create a nationwide epidemic that contagiously affects generation after generation. Although there are single fathers as well as mothers in South Africa, the percentage of single mothers is significantly higher than fathers. There are a plethora of causes for single parenthood in South Africa. Some of which are larger factors than others.There is of course the universal causes that result in a single parent, which include: separation or divorce, death and pregnancy out of wedlock. However, some of the larger causes that are more p revalent in South Africa, and third world countries in general, involve the ever rising epidemic of AIDS/HIV that affects countless families throughout South Africa. AIDS/HIV is rapidly killing people aged, 19-45 in South Africa and is increasing everyday. There are approximately more than 10 million children in South Africa who have died from AIDS.According to Professor Clifford Odimgegwu, Professor of the University of Witwatersrand in Southern Africa, â€Å"the grandparents are currently taking care of the orphans from parents who have died of this disease†. This creates a massive burden on the elderly who are even more so unable to provide for a child. The ever-present family destroyer, â€Å"divorce† has been splitting families in South Africa at an alarming rate. â€Å"Increased numbers of divorced in South Africa have also created more single-parent families†(Agarwal) than ever seen before.Statistics show that â€Å"(2009) seven million children are grow ing up with single mothers outnumbering the 6. 2 million-about 34% of the country’s children-who live with both parents†¦which shows that divorce is responsible for most of the estimated 40% of South Africa’s 18 million children being raised by single mothers†(261, Bojuwoye). Due to ongoing never-ending civil and foreign wars throughout South Africa, fathers being called to war create a heavy amount of women left to take care of the children and even at times extended family.As well as taking the father and the income away from the family, war leads unfortunately to many cases of rape that results in pregnancy. With such high rates of fertility in South Africa and such a deficit in contraceptives, it is not surprising that this creates women who have unwanted children who they are unable to care for. According to family counselor and single parenting expert Abhishek Agarwal, â€Å"a 2000 report on the ‘State of South Africa’s Population’ showed that the need for contraception for adult women and teenagers in rural areas fat outstrips the availability of contraceptive education and supplies†.A third reason for the absence of the father is the high rates of unemployment and inability to find work in rural areas. In some cases, fathers have been forced to leave the family home to find work across the country’s borders. This leaves the mother to fend for herself and her dependants. This can lead to extreme poverty, which can force single parents to abandon their children. Many South African mothers’ reasoning for abandonment is the fact that foster parents receive more financial support than do single parents.To the parent, this may seem like the most logical choice, to gamble their child’s survival on the small chance they’re put into a well-financed foster family. Regrettably, there are almost no government-funded programs designed to assist single-parent families in South Africa. Th e closest form of financial aid towards single-families is the State Maintenance Grant, which is directed towards 4 categories of state: the elderly, persons with disabilities, social relief, and child and family care.Towards mothers, she will be eligible only â€Å"if she has applied for financial support from her partner or the father of her children through a magistrate’s court, and has been unable to get it; or if she was widowed, deserted or under certain other conditions†(â€Å"The Report of the Lund Committee on Child and Family Support†). The government is currently working on new bills that would call for less restricted protocols, higher amounts, and a wider distribution of help towards these women.There are however, other non-government programs worldwide that target single-parent families in South Africa. There is a program that is run by the non-government organization SOS Children. This organization supplies vocational training courses (including b eadwork and dressmaking) to single parents. They are taught trades where they can make and sell products. They also give some single parents grants to start businesses of their own. There is also the FAMSA, an organization in South Africa, which helps out in counseling of individuals regardless of financial status.Lastly, there is an organization that originated in Rwanda and became it’s first non-government organization supporting parents without partners. Tabara Africa’s main objectives are to 1) set up single parent networks, 2) increase child welfare by increasing accerss to health care, education and other basic rights which low-9ncome families often go without, 3) assist single parent emplyment by supporting vocational training and single-parent work cooperatives without compromising child welfare, and 4) lobbying to make this a government issue and influencing policies which affect the welfare of single-parent families.Hopefully these and many other organization s out there can come together to make a difference for the tragic conditions which single-parents live in South America (Woolley). 4. Emotions With that said its probably acceptable to say parenting is never easy. There is no â€Å"on the job training†, when you walk into parenthood. It’s with basic information shared by friends or family. Children don’t come with instructions. When being a single parent all the responsibilities fall on one set of shoulders. Parenting is hard and painful. Singles have to be strong play the role of the mom and dad.Dealing with money as a single parent can be very stressful. One income and one parent as head of a household and to pay for the cost of supporting a family is hard. Dealing with the ex- spouse, with added stress for the children, bills, and work can pull on your emotions. As a single parent you are also isolated. Emotional distress can also affect a single parent; this can easily be conquered by allowing yourself go th rough an emotional process aided by a professional. The emotional process is management of emotion from denial, anger, depression, bargaining, and until you reach acceptance.In our modern society a single mother’s value is often overlooked and worse taken for granted. Usually children are raised in two parent’s homes. Most single mothers live the treadmill existence. They work at least one full- time job and often part time job in order to satisfy the financial needs of the family. Single moms rarely get a full night of sleep much less time for relaxation or enjoying the social side of life. As singles mothers we can’t give in to feelings of guilt or shame. There are many advantages in being a single parent and there are support groups that help single parents.There are many emotional stages when being a single parent. You feel angry, depressed, betrayed, happy and anxious. In being a single parent you are the mother and the father. To be a successful parent you need to take care of yourself, be healthy, be confident, save money, and attend support groups, and balance work and parenting. Not only do single parents suffer emotionally but the children do as well. When parents split up children usually become aggressive or badly behaved. Their behavior was linked to living in a broken home.There are different situations as of being a single parent (divorce, adoption, artificial insemination, surrogate motherhood, death, child abuse, or abandonment). In being a single parent as for me there are lots of programs that can assist you. It is hard emotional in being a single parent from my experience but I attend support groups to help me emotionally and I recommend it to other singles as well. 5. Statistics Single parents can vary in terms of not only being a single mother, or a single father, but also varies within race and age. According to Custodial Mothers and Fathers and Their Child Support, there are about 13. million single parents in the U nited States today. These parents are responsible for raising 21. 8 million children and approximately 26% of children in the United States today, is under the age of 21. Throughout the years, many people believed that mothers are more likely to be a single parent. Around 84% of custodial parents are mothers, and 16% of custodial parents are fathers. Of the mothers who are custodial parents, 45% are currently divorced or separated, 34. 2% have never been married, 19% are married, including women who have been remarried, and 1. 7% were widowed.In the father‘s case, 57. 8% are divorced or separated, 20. 9% have never married, 20% are currently married, again including those who have been remarried, and fewer than 1% were widowed. Although it’s difficult to raise their children as a single parent, both single mothers and single fathers need to be employed in order to efficiently raise their kids. 79. 5% of custodial single mothers are employed, of that percentage, 49. 8% w ork full time year round, and 29. 7% work part-time or part-year. 90% of custodial single fathers are employed, 71. 7% work full time, year round and the remaining 18. % work part-time or part-year. Men's income tend to rise by an average of 31% after separation. Women and children's income on the other hand, falls by an average of 12% after separation. Just because an individual is a single parent, does not mean that they will be struggling and in poverty. About 27% of custodial single mothers and their children live in poverty whereas 12. 9% of custodial single fathers and their children live in poverty. Those that are struggling can refer to government help in order to â€Å"get by† with their troubles. Among single mothers, 22% receive Medicaid, 23. % receive food stamps, 12% receive some form of public housing or rent subsidy, and 5% receive Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, also known as TANF. Each ethnicity and race differs as well. Certain races have more singl e mothers than the other, and single fathers seem to be smaller in general. 50% of African American children live in single parent families, which tend to be with the mother, 25% of Hispanic children live with a single mother, 16% of non-Hispanic white children live with a single mother, 10% of Asian children live with a single mother, and 4-5% of children of all races live with a single father.Another factor would be age, 74% of single parents are women that are aged 30 years and older. The average age would be around 36 years of age. 24% of single mothers are under 30 years, 13% of single mothers are under 25 years, and 2% are under 20 years. 39. 1% of custodial single mothers are 40 years old or older. Among females, 54% of custodial mothers are raising one child from the absent parent and 46% have two or more children living with them. Children will be without a doubt affected by the separation of their parents.Whether they are born into a family of just one parent or if they se parate after the child is in the picture already. 1 in 3 is born to unmarried parents and 1 in 4 lives with only one parent. Unfortunately, 1 in 2 children will live in a single parent family at some point in childhood. Due to the fact that so many teenagers are getting pregnant and having kids at such a young age, 1 in 8 is born to a teenage mother. The majority of teenage pregnancy are unplanned and resort to the child being born into a â€Å"broken family† with just one parent being present. in 25 lives with neither parent, sorry to say that some kids don’t live with neither of their parents, but just because this happens, it does not mean that it is a bad thing. Adoption can always be a good thing, especially if the biological parents are not stable enough to take care of their child. The emotional, financial, and mental stability of children are in jeopardy in these non-nuclear family homes. since the great majority of homes are non-traditional we never help but w onder how the single parents do it. they manage to be mom and dad in one.A little insight is always good because you never know what’s set for you're future. Sometimes its good to walk a mile in someone else's shoes.