Juvenile Statistics Paper Essay Example for Free

Juvenile Statistics Paper Essay Crimes are committed by juvenile offenders every day and to gain a better understanding as to why they commit such crimes the trends have to be evaluated. The following statistics are findings made in 2008. These findings will give a clear understanding of the overall decrease in juvenile arrests made, touch base on the increase in drug offenses and simple assaults, provide implications for juvenile females and members of ethnic and racial minorities, examine the increase in arrests of juvenile females and the decrease in arrests of male juvenile offenders for violent crimes, and assess the tracking of juveniles arrests as a method of measuring the amount of and trends in juvenile crime. In 2008, there were about 2.11 million juveniles arrested. Overall, there were three percent fewer juvenile arrests in 2008 than in 2007 and violent crime arrests fell two percent. These findings are made by local law enforcement agencies throughout the country who report to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR). From 1990-1997 the juvenile arrest rate for drug abuse violations increased 145%. The rate declined 28% from 1997-2008 but the 2008 rate was 78% more than the 1990 rate. From 1980-1997 the juvenile arrest rate for simple assault increased 156%. This number declined a small amount in 2002 and raised a small amount through 2006. Following the decline over those two years, the 2008 arrest rate for simple assault was greater than the 1980 rate for most racial groups. In 2008, females accounted for 30% of juvenile arrests. There were a total of 629,800 females under the age of 18 who were arrested in 2008. Racial composition of the U.S. juvenile population ages 10-17 in 2008 was 78% white, 16% black, 5% Asian/Pacific Islander and 1% American Indian with Hispanics being included in the white racial category. Of all juvenile arrests for violent crimes in 2008, 47% were white/Hispanic, 52% were black, and 1% Asian and 1% were American Indian. Juvenile female arrests increased for simple assault, larceny theft, and DUI while male arrests decreased. â€Å"From the mid-1980s to the peak in 1993, the juvenile arrest rate for murder more than doubled. Then, the juvenile arrest rate for murder declined through the mid-2005, reaching a level in 2004 that was 77% less than the 1993 peak. The growth in the juvenile murder arrest rate that began in 2004 was interrupted in 2008 as the rate fell 6% over the past year, resting at a level that was 74% below its 1993 peak.† (Puzzanchera, Charles. 2009. Juvenile Arrests 2008.) Juveniles have certain protections under the law but the Uniform Crime Report (UCR) allows us to keep track of what crimes, known to the police, and arrests made during the reporting calendar year. Based on the information provided by the UCR, the FBI prepares its annual Crime in the United States statistical compilation. This information is used to provide details on the extent and nature of juvenile crimes and if there are any trends being made. Some of the findings from the UCR Program is that â€Å"juveniles accounted for 16% of all violent crime arrests and 26% of all property crime arrests in 2008.† Another interesting finding by the UCR is that â€Å"between 1999 and 2008, juvenile arrests for aggravated assault decreased more for males than for females (22% vs. 17%). During this period, juvenile male arrests for simple assault declined 6% and female arrests increased 12%†. The UCR also found that â€Å"the juvenile murder arrest rate in 2008 was 3.8 arrests per 100,000 juveniles ages 10 through 17. This was 17% more than the 2004 low of 3.3, but 74% less than the 1993 peak of 14.4. In 2008, 11% (1,740) of all murder victims were younger than age 18. More than one-third (38%) of all juvenile murder victims were younger than age 5, but this proportion varied widely across demographic groups.† (Puzzanchera, Charles. 2009. Juvenile Arrests 2008.) The conclusion is simple, the overall juvenile arrests made for violent crimes only fell two percent than the year before and more juvenile females are committing more violent crimes. All of the statistics that were discussed have been analyzed and examined. Criminal Justice and Juvenile Justice Professionals should be able to identify and organize these statistics to structure a preventative system within a community to deter such delinquent acts. The UCR reports and findings allow Americans to understand the crime trends within the juvenile justice system. References (Puzzanchera, Charles. 2009. Juvenile Arrests 2008.)

Research Methodology Chapter: Communication Research

Research Methodology Chapter: Communication Research One communication-related aspect of the engagement debate concerns the fundamental nature of engagement and whether it can be considered an attitude, a psychological or motivational state, or a personality trait. The nature of engagement is a significant issue for corporate communicators since they are well-placed to influence workplace attitudes and stimulate employee motivation. Kahn (1990) presents engagement as a three-component construct influenced by three psychological states. Robinson et al. (2004) define the concept as a positive attitude. Conversely, Saks (2006) argues that engagement is not an attitude but a psychological state, while others (Sparrow and Balain, 2010) believe that engagement is an attitude. Macey and Schneider (2008a) regard engagement as a complex network encompassing trait, state, and behavioural constructs. Kahn (2010) contrasts his conception of dynamic engagement with steady-state (trait) views of motivation. Kahn describes engagement as both delicate and fragile, and quite resilient. So, Kahns view of engagement exhibits a mixture of attitudinal-type states together with more fixed steady-state predisposition traits. This complex state and trait view of engagement is useful for communicators since it highlights a need for employee communication to understand and serve internal stakeholders core (trait) communication needs, as well as surface (state and attitude) communication needs. Moreover, internal communication represents one of the organisational conditions that facilitate engagement. Pugh and Dietz (2008) consider leadership as a precursor of organisation engagement and organisational effectiveness as a consequence. The communication abilities of leadership teams are recognised as important in driving engagement (Wiley et al., 2010). Communication has been identified also as an underlying factor associated with employee engagement (Kahn, 1992). Likewise, MacLeod and Clarke (2009) highlight communication as a critical factor for enhancing performance through employee engagement. They argue that good quality internal communication enhances engagement as they emphasise that employees need clear communication from senior management to understand how their own roles fit with the organisation vision. Unsurprisingly, they cite poor communication as a barrier to engagement and a cause of disengagement. However, contributions from the professionals on communication disciplines are surprisingly meager given that internal communication is an organisational level interventio n which can positively impact employee engagement. Internal communication in any organisation has been stated to have a correlation with employee feeling of self-satisfaction and their productivity (Clampitt and Downs, 1992). High communication effectiveness is linked to better financial performance and organizational stability (Internal communication effectiveness enhances bottom-line results, journal of organizational excellence, Summer 2006, pp 71-71) Van Riel (1998, pp. 8-27) gives an overview of the elements of corporate communication as all the communication within an organisation, such as managerial communication, organisational communication, and marketing communication. This informs the employees willingness to meet the strategic mission, vision, and objectives of the organisation which creates a competitive advantage of the organisation. Research Design This section will discuss the research framework proposed for use in this study. This methodological framework is influenced by the research onion model develop by Saunders (2012) pp 128 which include general information regarding the research design and strategy, method of data collection, measurement of variable and data analysis as well as evaluate the credibility and validity of the study. There would be an examination of merits and demerits of the chosen methods use in this study, a consideration of ethical issues, as a result, the limitations. Research Design Available literature considers basically five different approaches ranging from experimental, case study, longitudinal, cross-sectional to comparative design (Bryman and Bell, 2011; Saunders et al, 2009). In view of the aim of this research, there will be a combination of approaches also known as a mixed method in the investigation of the research theme (Saunders et al, 2009). Also, a set of quantifiable data will be collected to help establish the relationship between two or more variables (Bryman and Bell, 2011). Research Strategy The strategy to be adopted for this research will be quantitative in nature, this is because will be formulation and testing of hypotheses which are tentative suppositions or proposed explanations made based on limited evidence as a starting point for further investigation which on the face of empirical evidence could hold true or false and as such be graduated to be theory or otherwise. According to Saunders et al, (2009) quantitative research is a strategy that lay emphasis on quantification in data collection and analysis that provides solid scientific fact of knowledge on the basis of positivism. Furthermore, Bryman and Bell, (2011) suggested that the application of a quantitative research strategy has the latent for statistical generalization as against qualitative research employed in many social and natural sciences academic disciplines which are more descriptive. This method of approach, therefore, is more useful to achieve the set aims and objectives of this research stated herein. Data Collection There will be the use of both primary and secondary data collection sources to collect appropriate and relevant data that will enable credible, complete and valid conclusions in accordance with the aims and objectives of the research. Primary data will include the conduct of interview of some members of the management team of the case study organisation and a questionnaire of other concerned employees. The use of these two methods is hoped to balance some of the limitations inherent in each. In addition, this research will use the content analysis approach which is a strategy for the review and analysis of relevant secondary documents from Abellio. Data Analysis All data collected for the purpose of this research will be careful analysis and tested against the theories with the aid of IBM SPSS statistical program. IBM SPSS Statistics is an integrated software product that addresses the entire analytical process, from planning to data collection to analysis, reporting, and deployment (Gaskin, J, 2012). It provides a range of statistical procedures suitable for many problems, including crosstabs, linear regression, Monte Carlo simulation, geospatial analytics, and the ability to extend built-in capabilities with Python, R, or Java code (IBM.com). I have opted for IBM SPSS statistical program for its effectiveness in data analysis and presentation quality of custom tables to help users and analysts to interpret data which could then be tested against the theoretical statements that could, in turn, lead to further generalisation statements (Bryman and Bell, 2011). Limitations of Study The following limitations are anticipated: 1. Data collected is based on interviews and questionnaires administered and as such respondents may not give the actual situation for fear that management of reprisal action against them 2. The data collected by the observation technique may be very limited. 3. The case study organisation has a large number of employees consequently, only one hundred of the affected will be sampled through the rank and file. 4. Equally important is the problem of time as the research will only be conducted within given three-month period. Frankenstein | Analysis Frankenstein | Analysis Frankenstein was a man whose ambition led to a disaster; and his actions led to evil. These are outcomes for which he is solely responsible. Is Frankenstein an innocent? In my opinion, he was not an innocent. The meaning of innocent is to free from evil or guilt. The word Frankenstein is defined in the Encarta dictionary as a creator of something that causes ruin or dest ruction, or brings about a personal downfall, this shows that his name was quite well suited. A common quotation is that One is innocent until proved guilty, If this quotation is applied to Victor Frankenstein, he would be innocent, however my argument is that he was not innocent, it was his fault his family suffered, he brought on his own destruction and was responsible for creating a human, which was morally and contextually incorrect; He would be innocent for allowing the murders of William, Justine, Elizabeth and Clerval to take place. It may be true that Frankenstein did not physically murder, however, he is the main cause, and the reason they died. Frankenstein never admitted to his families what he had done; he never took responsibility for his actions. The so called monster murdered for companionship, not to seek revenge from his victims, but to seek revenge from Frankenstein. The circumstances forced Frankensteins monster to do so, Victor was the instigator of these circumstances. My first thought was to discover what I knew of the murderer and cause instant pursuit to be made. But I paused when I reflected on the story I had to tell, this shows that Victor had the knowledge that he was the reason William was dead. He said my first thought, showing the clearness of his knowledge and that this thought had been lingering in his mind, he knew what he was doing. Frankenstein didnt need to know about the murderer, because he indirectly was the murderer, through the circumstances he created for the monster, as I mentioned briefly before. Which is why he paused half way through his thought and realised he was exactly who the murderer was, even though he blamed the creature. Frankensteins reason for creating the creature was his interest in his studies, which led him to the idea of bettering mankind. Victor thought he was doing a service to humanity by creating a new human. A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me. I might in process of time (although I now found it impossible) renew life where death had apparently devoted the body to corruption. This quote shows his ego behind these plans. He wanted to conquer death, something the average human could not do. He wanted this creature to revere him highly by as he was supposedly beautiful and perfect creature. According to him, it may have been acceptable to play the role of god; maybe his being a scientist is why he didnt think of what was morally correct, and he didnt think of how the society would react to his actions. However, having said that, he didnt admit his doings to his family, perhaps he knew they wouldnt accept it, or the deaths in the family could have a higher weightage in terms of being more important than letting his parents know the truth. If they did know the truth, they wouldnt be happy with him creating the creature. The quote does show that right from the start, Victor had an idea of how he would somewhat be stepping into the shoes of a godlike figure, he outlines the fact that he would be superior, and he would have the power to renew the dead. This proves that he had no innocence, or naivety in terms of knowing precisely what he was doing and what it would lead to. I, the miserable and the abandoned, am an abortion, to be spurned at, and kicked, and trampled on. Is what the creature says after being shunned, on the basis of aesthetics. This shows his faults, and how he was wrong to shun the creature. He may have shunned it because he already conquered death, so in his view, he may have already obtained the status of god, or a superior power, something no one had achieved. He didnt think about anything past the ugliness of the creature, or his personal benefits. His selfishness is what ultimately destroyed him and others as well. The creature he created is more like a project to Frankenstein, his aim is to conquer death, and once he has done so, the project is over. Not once does he consider the fact that he has simply given birth to a new human being, with feelings and emotion, a live creature who has to be taught the ways of life as if it is a baby. Frankensteins abandonment of the creature is another factor that proves him guilty, and not an innocent, as shown in the quote I previously mentioned, with the creatures emotions towards being shunned. Its his own fault that the creature comes back saying I may die; but first you, my tyrant and tormentor, shall curse the sun that gazes on your misery. Beware; for I am fearless, and therefore powerful. The creature was deprived of the companionship, which he could only get from his creator. The creature figures that the only way he can get some attention, is by threatening his creator. This could be compared to a situation with a child and a parent. Frankenstein is somewhat the parent of his creature. His job is to nurture him, but because of his own ego, he runs away. If it were a parent and a child, the child would be defenceless because it hasnt even developed physically, however the creature is an example where he is an uneducated child, with a higher physical strength. Frankensteins creature thinks through intuition, as any child who hasnt learnt anything would do. He doesnt know whats right and wrong, so he doesnt know its wrong to threaten; he doesnt know its wrong to kill. Blaming him is like blaming a child for breaking a valuable, such as a vase. You cant blame the child because their knowledge hasnt developed, they havent yet learnt. However in the childs case, after making such a mistake, the child would be taught not to do so again, creating a basis of how it is wrong, this does not take place for the creature. It could be argued that the creature shou ld know through Victors fear, but does a child learn anything when it senses fear? No, it anything, it will only learn to keep intimidating. Frankensteins faults of his creation, or you could say his faults in parenting, were completely his responsibility. Frankensteins creature is described as having dark black hair, yellow skin, black lips and eyes sunk into his sockets (Shelly 56). Its quite ironic that Frankenstein feared his own creation, he is the one who hand-picked the features his so called perfect man would have. For him to say breathless horror and disgust filled my heart(56), towards a creation of his own, just shows his tendency towards aesthetics, and how backward he is in terms of being accepting, yet how forward he is in terms of doing something new. He is responsible for the way the creature turned out. This once more, proves his irresponsibility, and his view to the creation as a project. His attitude towards the creature is why he was incapable of acting the right way. He wasnt serious enough, or perhaps he wasnt ready to face negative consequences, seeing as he was a perfectionist. The background Frankenstein created in terms of nurture is what caused his creature to murder. Victor admitted to creating the monster, but he denied that he drove the monster to commit murder. He wouldnt admit to anyone; not himself, not his family, that he was the one who allowed the murders to take place. He allowed Clerval, his wife Elizabeth, his brother William and Justines death to take place because he didnt take the blame for his actions. If he had admitted to his actions earlier, less deaths would have been caused, if he had been responsible, and given the creature what it needed, he would not be guilty of four murders. In the end, Frankenstein was at loss of everything close to him, he blamed the monster, but it was his fault. He had a faint idea that it was his fault, although no one could possibly be able to admit to murdering the people close to them. The only way he could be innocent, is for not literally taking a knife and stabbing his relatives. However the pain he got from his creature was his own fault. Innocence lies in having no sense of guilt for any action of yours, this, Victor did clearly not have. The creature couldnt stop himself from destroying Victor, because Victor couldnt stop himself from creating the creature. The creature was an innocent; it only reacted to the actions of society. Victor was guilty in every way. Arrhythmogenic Right Venticular Dysplasia | Case Report Arrhythmogenic Right Venticular Dysplasia | Case Report Arrhythmogenic Right Venticular Dysplasia – A Rare case report from tribal zone of Central India Dr. Prakash Khunte, Dr. P. Beck, Dr. K. Yadav ABSTRACT Arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia (ARVD) is under diagnosed cardiomyopathy which commonly presents in young adults with ventricular tachycardia or sudden death. It is characterized pathologically by progressive fibrofatty replacement of the myocardium, primarily of the right ventricular free wall. Clinically, it presents with life-threatening malignant ventricular arrhythmias which may lead to sudden death, most often in young people and athletes. ARVD/C is difficult to diagnose, although standardized diagnostic criteria have been proposed, based on the presence of major and minor criteria encompassing electrocardiographic, arrhythmic, morphofunctional, histopathologic, and genetic factors. Case report A 30 year male patient named Heeralal Diwakar R/o Baloda Bazar (C.G.) was admitted in department of Medicine, Intensive cardiac Coronary Unit at Pt. J. N. M. Medical College Dr .B.R.A.M. Hospital Raipur with the complain of palpitation ,dizziness, dyspnoea on exertion and left sided chest pain, cough with expectorant distension of abdomen since 8 days.patient having severe palpitation and dizziness in recent hours. Patients having similar complain and admitted two time in hospital in last two year and patient had episode of PSVT and had given DC shock and patient on aspirin,amidaron,metoprolol. There is no family history of sudden cardiac death and any heart disease. Patient was former by occupation and having addiction to tobacco and occasionally alcoholic. On admission patient on general examination pulse -100/min regular.blood pressure was 100/70 mmhg, height -161 cm,weight 58 kg,BMI- 22.39,Iteric ,no cyanosis, oedema were present .on systemic examination bilateral crepitatition present in infrascapular area ,apex beat present on 5 th intercosta space on midclavicular lines,s1 soft.s2 present,s3,s4 absent .No thrill ,murmur,parasternal heave were present. On investigation E.C.G. ST segment elevation seen in lead II,III,aVf, ST segment depression in lead I,Avl,Twave inversion in v1-v6, epsilon wave in V1-v3. Troponin card test was positive and patient diagnosed as acute inferior wall Myocardial Infraction with congestive cardiac failure. Other investigation were random blood sugar was 120 mg/dl, urea 90 mg/dl, creatinine 2 mg/dl,s.billirubin 3.7 mg/dl , direct billirubin 2.3 mg/dl,S.G.O.T S.G.P.T were high,alkaline phosphatase 12877 mg/dl ,sodium 130 mg/dl, potassium 4.9 mg/dl.s. protein 7 g/dl,serum albumin 4 gm/dl,s. cholesterol 114 mg/dl, triglyceride 64 mg/dl,LDL 84 MG/DL,VLDL 13 mg/dl,HDL-17 mg/dl. TLC count were 34000/cumm,Hb 14.5 gm/dl, platelet 222000 /cumm X ray chest cardiomegaly was present. On echocardiography Right ventricle dilated ,RV wall thickness 4 mm. Right Atrium dilated, severe non hypertensive TR , Right ventricle thinned out ,normal LV systolic function suggestive of Arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia. Patient was advised to continue amiodarone ,aspirin ramipril and has been asymptomatic ever since. DISCUSSION The name arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia(ARVD) was coined for the first time in 1978 by Frankand Fontaine. Arrythmogenic right ventricular (RV) cardiomyopathy (ARVC) is a cardiomyopathy characterized pathologically by fibrofatty replacement primarily of the RV and clinically by life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias in apparently healthy young people. The prevalence of the disease has been estimated at 1 in 5,000 individuals, although this estimate will likely increase as awareness of the condition increases among physicians. Arrythmogenic RV cardiomyopathy is recognized as a cause of sudden death during athletic activity because of its association with ventricular arrhythmias that are provoked by exercise-induced catecholamine discharge. Diagnosis may be difficult because many of the electrocardiographic abnormalities mimic patterns seen in normal children, and the disease often involves only patchy areas of the RV. he prevalence of ARVC in the general population is approximately 1 in 5,000 , but the disease is not widely recognized because of the difficulty in making the diagnosis . A familial predilection of the disease has been recognized since 1982 when Marcus et al. described 24 cases of ARVC, two in the same family. Subsequently, several groups have reported familial ARVC, and families with two or more affected individuals have been recognized in Asian, Japanese, Northern European, African and North American populations . Genectics The disease is typically inherited as an autosomal dominant trait with variable penetrance and incomplete expression. The genes responsible for ARVC have not been identified, but seven loci have been mapped to chromosomes 14 (14q23 to q24 and 14q12 to q22), 1 (1q42 to q43), 2 (2q32.1 to q32.2), 3 (3p23) and 10 (10p12 to p14) . The genetic products of these sites have not been easily identified because of incomplete penetrance and expression, age-related expression and difficulties with accurate diagnosis of the disease. Recently, plakoglobin has been identified as the first gene responsible for autosomal recessive ARVC . The gene was identified in Naxos disease where greater than 90% cosegregation of ARVC with cutaneous manifestations, woolly hair and keratodermia, facilitated case identification. Plakoglobin participates in forming cell-to-cell junctions. It is postulated that inadequate cell adherence damages the cardiac cell membranes leading to cell death and fibrofatty replaceme nt. The cardiac ryanodine receptor gene (RyR2) has also recently been implicated in ARVC and offers potential insight into the association of adrenergically mediated ventricular arrhythmias with this disease. The ryanodine receptor induces calcium release from the sarcoplasmic reticulum into the cytosol . The cardiac ryanodine receptor has also been identified as being responsible for catecholamine-induced ventricular tachycardia . Its skeletal muscle counterpart has been implicated in malignant hyperthermia and central core disease , a congenital myopathy, but the mechanisms by which mutations in the cardiac ryanodine receptor might mediate fibrofatty myocardial changes are not clear and will likely be the focus of future studies. Despite these advances, genetic analysis for ARVD is not clinically available and is restricted to research laboratories. Histopathology Characteristically, the RV in ARVC is replaced with a fibrofatty tissue. Morphologic alterations of ARVC usually begin in the subepicardium or mediomural layers of the RV and progress to the endocardium with fibrofatty replacement of myocytes and thinning of the wall. The regions of RV most frequently involved are the RV inflow area, the apex and the infundibulum. These three areas form â€Å"the triangle of dysplasia† . However, small amounts of fat are present in the epicardial layer and within the RV myocardium in normal subjects. Etiology In addition to a genetic cause of ARVC, disontogenetic, degenerative, infectious or inflammatory ( apoptotic and myocyte transdifferentiation theories have been proposed either as the cause of or as environmental factors facilitating gene expression. The disontogenetic theory is largely historical but suggests that ARVC is a milder form of â€Å"parchment RV† or Uhl’s anomaly a congenital hypoplasia of the RV myocardium, which presents in infancy as congestive heart failure (CHF) . The degenerative theory suggests that ARVC is a consequence of myocyte death due to an inherited metabolic or ultrastructural defect. A possible defect has been mapped to chromosome l4q23 to q24 . This area encodes for the alpha actinin gene, which shares structural homology with the amino terminal domain of dystrophin. This finding supports the concept of a genetically determined atrophy similar to that in patients with Duchenne’s or Becker’s muscular dystrophy. Some have suggested that ARVC should be considered as a â€Å"myocardial dystrophy† Furthermore, skeletal muscle involvement has been reported in a Swedish family with ARVC, and the defect has been tentatively localized to chromosome 10q22.3 The infectious or inflammatory theory maintains that the disease results from previous myocarditis. Inflammatory infiltrates are common in histologic specimens from patients with ARVC ECG The ECG in patients with ARVD/C usuallyshows sinus rhythm, QRS duration 110 ms in lead V1, a terminal deà ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡ection within or at the end of the QRS complex (called epsilon wave) in leads V1–V3 (30% of patients), and inversion of T waves in the right precordial leads (50%–70% of patients). Complete right bundle branch block is found in approximately 15% of patients and incomplete right bundle branch block in 18% of patients with ARVD/C. In the presence of right bundle branch block pattern, selective prolongation of the QRS duration in leads V1–V3 compared with lead V6 (25 ms, parietal block) is an important hallmark of ARVD/C. . Additional ECG markers have been reported, such as the ratio of QRS duration in leads V1V2V3 vs V4V5V6 >1.2 and a prolonged S wave upstroke in V1–V3 >55 ms in the absence of right bundle branch block. Arrhythmia Left bundle branch block type VT on ECG, Holter monitoring, or during exercise testing Extrasystoles of more than 200 over a 24-h period. Echocardiography mild to Severe dilatation and reduction of right ventricular ejection fraction with no (or only mild) left ventricular impairment Localised right ventricular aneurysms (akinetic or dyskinetic areas with diastolic bulging) Severe segmental dilatation of the right ventricle. Radioisotope techniques Radionuclide angiography, by showing abnormal right ventricular function with left ventricular involvement, is usefulfor predicting subsequent cardiac death in ARVD/C.Myocardial perfusion scintigraphy allows noninvasive assessment of right ventricular damage in patients with arrhythmias due to ARVD/C This technique may distinguish patients with ARVD/C from those with idiopathic right ventricular outà ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡ow tract tachycardias Cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging This modality allows visualization of the right ventricle, not only anatomically and morphologically but also in functional and à ¯Ã‚ ¬Ã¢â‚¬Å¡ow dynamic terms. Functional ab normalities consist of right ventricular aneurysms, regional thinning, right ventricular dilation, failure of systolic thickening, and impaired global and diastolic right ventricularfunction. Clinical presentation The clinical presentation varies widely because ARVD/C includes a spectrum of different conditions rather than a single identity. Different pathologic processes may manifest a diversity of symptoms, such as fatigue, atypical chest pain, syncope, or acute coronary syndrome .ARVD/C is a disease that may have a temporal progression, and the disease may present differently according to the time of presentation There may be (1) a symptomatic form with transient or sustained ventricular tachycardia of left bundle branch block configuration, although right bundle branch block configuration also can be observed; (2) an asymptomatic form consisting of ventricular ectopic beats (1,000/24 hours); (3) right ventricular failure with or without arrhyth mias; and (4) a masked form in which sudden death, usuallyduring exercise, is the first clinical presentation. Overall, judging the accurate position of the patient on the time scale of the spectrum is difficult, and some patients may remain stable for several decades. Diagnosis A definite diagnosis of ARVD/C is based on histologic demonstration of transmural fibrofatty replacement of right ventricular myocardium at either autopsy or surgery. In 1994, McKenna et al established the criteria for diagnosing ARVD/C in a Task Force report on ARVD/C Criteria for Diagnosis of ARVD/C 1. Family history Major Familial disease confirmed at necropsy or surgery. Minor Family history of premature sudden death (,35 years of age) due to  suspected ARVD/C. Family history (clinical diagnosis based on present criteria). 2. ECG depolarization/conduction abnormalities Major Epsilon waves or localized prolongation (.110 ms) of QRS complex in  right precordial leads (V1–V3). Minor Late potentials on signal-averaged ECG. 3. ECG repolarization abnormalities Minor Inverted T waves in right precordial leads (V2 and V3) in people. 12  years of age and in absence of right bundle branch block. 4. Arrhythmias Minor Sustained or nonsustained left bundle branch block–type ventricular  tachycardia documented on ECG or Holter monitoring or during  exercise testing. Frequent ventricular extrasystoles (.1000/24 h on Holter monitoring). 5. Global or regional dysfunction and structural alterations* Major Severe dilatation and reduction of RV ejection fraction with no or mild  LV involvement. Localized RV aneurysms (akinetic or dyskinetic areas with diastolic  bulgings). Severe segmental dilatation of RV.   Minor Mild global RV dilatation or ejection fraction reduction with normal LV. Mild segmental dilatation of RV. Regional RV hypokinesia. 6. Tissue characteristics of walls Major Fibrofatty replacement of myocardium on endomyocardial biopsy. *Detected by echocardiography, angiography, magnetic resonance imaging,  or radionuclide scintigraphy. Modified from McKenna et al. Therapy Because clinical findings that predict long-term outcomeof patients with ARVD/C are incompletely known, no precise guidelines exist to select patients who should be treated with b-blockers, antiarrhythmic drugs, or a Implantable cardioverter-defibrillator. r. Management of patients with ARVD/C is individualized, and strategies are based on local experience of the different centers. References Siddiq I. Khalil), Amjad Kamal, Shakeel Ahmad Department of Medicine and Cardiology, Almana General Hospital, PO Box 10366,Jubail 31961, Saudi Arabia. Eur J Echocardiography (2004) 5, 394e398. Carol Gemayel, MD*; Antonio Pelliccia, MD† ; Paul D Thompson, MD J Am Coll Cardiol. 2001;38(7):1773-1781.doi:10.1016/S0735-1097(01)01654-0. Cristina Basso, Domenico Corrado, Frank I Marcus, Andrea Nava, Gaetano Thiene Lancet 2009; 373: 1289–1300 University of Padua Medical School, Padua, Italy. Philippine Kià ¨s, MD, Marianne Bootsma, MD, PhD, Jeroen Bax, MD, PhD,  Martin J. Schalij, MD, PhD, Ernst E. van der Wall, MD, PhD Heart Rhythm, Vol 3, No 2, February 2006,Department of Cardiology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, The Netherlands. Domenico Corrado, Guy Fontaine, Frank I. Marcus, William J. McKenna, Andrea Nava, Gaetano Thiene and Thomas Wichter, Circulation. 2000;101:e101-e106, doi: 10.1161/01.CIR.101.11.e101 Frank R, Fontaine G. Electrocardiologie de quatre cas de dysplasia ventriculaire droite arythmogene. Arch Mal Coeur Vaiss 1978;71:963–972. Rampazzo A, Nova A, Malacrida S, Beffagua G, Bauce B, Rossi V, et al. Mutation in human desmoplakin domain binding to plakoglobin causes a dominant form of arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia. Am J Hum Genet 2002;71(5):1200e6 Bauce B, Rampazzo A, Basso C, Bagattin A, Daliento L, Tiso N, et al. Screening of ryanodine receptor type 2 mutations in families with effort induced polymorphic ventricular rhythmias and sudden death: early diagnosis of asymptomatic carrier. JACC 2002;40(2):341e9.

Neural structures: Subserving psychological function

Neural structures: Subserving psychological function This essay will evaluate what is known about the role of neural structures in subserving emotion. It was concluded that although emotion is a difficult behaviour to study scientifically, clear importance of the role of the amygdala has been found. Nonetheless, other structures and brain regions are involved in the responses to emotion, and how they interact together is an area in need of further investigation. Neural networks have been defined by Colman (2009) as a system of interconnected neurons. These systems can be either in the nervous system or in the brain. This essay will focus on the role of these neural structures in emotion. Colman (2009) defined emotion as a short-term evaluative, affective and intentional psychological state. The cognitive neuroscience of emotion has been slow to become widely recognised, as emotion is a behaviour that is difficult to study in a systematic manner. Recently however researchers have been challenging this gap in knowledge, and as a result, emotion is quickly emerging as a critical research topic (Gazzaniga, Ivry Mangun, 2009). BASIC HUMAN EMOTIONS Ekman and Friesen (1971) set out to find the basic human facial representations. From their cross-cultural work they suggested that anger, fear, disgust, happiness, sadness and surprise are the six basic human facial expressions that represent all emotional states. Despite there still being considerable debate about whether a single list is enough to incorporate all emotional experiences, it is generally agreed that these are the basic, universal human emotions (Gazzaniga et al., 2009); these emotions will therefore be the ones focused on later in the essay. HOW RESEARCH HAS DEVELOPED Early research into the cognitive neuroscience of emotion mainly focused on identifying the limbic system as the emotional brain (MacLean, 1949). Recently research has been focused on specific types of emotional tasks and identifying the neural systems underlying specific emotional behaviours. It is no longer thought that there is simply one neural circuit of emotion, rather that there are usually a number of different neural systems involved, dependant on the emotional situation (Gazzaniga et al., 2009). THE ROLE OF THE AMYGDALA The amygdala is a small structure in the medial temporal lobe. This structure has been a focus of research on emotional processing in the brain since Weiskrantz (1956, as cited in Gazzaniga et al., 2009) identified the amygdala as the primary medial temporal lobe structure underlying the fear related deficits in a medical condition known as KlÃÆ' ¼ver-Bucy syndrome. The amygdala receives inputs from every sensory system and is thought to be the structure where the emotional significance of sensory signals is learned and retained (Pinel, 2008). Sergerie, Chochol and Armony (2008) carried out a meta-analysis of functional neuroimaging studies looking at the role of the amygdala in emotional processing. Previously many functional neuroimaging studies have given solid support for an important role of the amygdala in negative emotional processing (Sergerie et al., 2008). The rationale behind this study was to address the issue of whether factors such as sex, valence and stimulus type have an effect on the magnitude and lateralization of amygdala reaction. The results confirmed that the amygdala reacts to both positive and negative emotional stimuli, particularly when participants were exposed to faces showing emotional expressions (Sergerie et al., 2008). Differences were not found in amygdala lateralization as a function of sex or valence. Strong support was also shown for a functional dissociation between the left and right amygdala in terms of temporal dynamics. The findings of this study indicate that the amygdala is involv ed in the processing of positive emotion as well as negative emotion. Following the large amount of empirical evidence showing the role of the amygdala in emotional processing, LeDoux (1996) warned that it may be tempting to conclude that the amygdala is at the centre of emotion reaction in the brain. This would be erroneous however, as there are clearly other structures involved in emotional processing. For the role of the neural system in emotion to be fully understood, further research is needed into the other structures involved. THE ROLE OF THE MEDIAL FRONTAL LOBES Recently, functional brain imaging studies have shown evidence of activity within the medial frontal lobes whilst emotions are being both cognitively suppressed or re-evaluated (Quirk Beer, 2006). The latest studies of medial prefrontal lobe activity have used suppression paradigms (where participants are told to suppress their emotional reactions to unpleasant images) or reappraisal paradigms (where participants are asked to try to reinterpret an image to adjust their emotional reaction to it) (Quirk Beer, 2006). The medial frontal lobes have been found to be active when both of these paradigms have been studied, and it seems that they interact with the amygdala to exert their cognitive control of emotion (Holland and Gallagher, 2004). These studies show that the medial frontal lobes have a role in the processing of emotion; further investigation is required in this area to reveal exactly what role this structure plays and how it interacts with other structures in the brain. THE REGULATION OF EMOTION Mak, Hu, Zhang, Xiao and Lee (2009) investigated the regulation of emotion through functional magnetic resonance imaging. The study identified neural correlates of the regulation of positive or negative emotion. The study of the regulation of emotion is important, as dysregulation of emotion is associated with the inability to modulate intense emotions that may worsen affective disorders (Mak et al., 2009). Whilst either viewing emotional pictures or regulating their emotions induced by these pictures, participants brain activities were monitored (Mak et al., 2009). The neuroimaging findings showed that the left superior and lateral frontal regions were common neural correlates of regulation for both emotions. The prefrontal regions and the left insula were found to be associated with regulation of positive emotion, while activity in the left orbitofrontal gyrus, the left superior frontal gyrus and the anterior cingulated gyrus appear to be associated with regulation of negative emot ion. In conclusion, Mak et al. (2009) suggested that there are both shared and specific neuro-cognitive mechanisms involved in the regulation of positive and negative emotions. If knowledge was to be enhanced into the neural mechanism behind emotion regulation, the understanding of the complex interaction between emotion and basic human behaviours could be improved. Through understanding the neural mechanisms behind emotion regulation, helpful insights could be provided into the biological basis of mental health (Mak et al., 2009). THE ROLE OF INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES Several studies into the neural mechanisms of emotion have focused on individual differences. One of these studies, by Adolphs et al. (1999) tested how well nine neuropsychological patients with bilateral amygdala damage could identify emotion in facial expressions. As previously reported, the group as a whole was found to have problems identifying the emotion of fear (Adolphs et al., 1999). There were however, individual differences amongst the patients; some had difficulty identifying other negative emotions whereas two of the patients had no problem identifying emotions in facial expressions at all. Adolphà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s et al. (1999) said that remarkably these latter two patients had total bilateral amygdala lesions as revealed by structural MRIà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s. Canli, Sivers, Whitfield, Gotlib and Gabrieli (2002) used functional MRIs to look at the differences between the reactions of healthy participants who scored high in extraversion (who tend to have positive emotional reactions) and those who scored high on neuroticism (who have a tendency towards negative emotional reactions). It was found that all of the participants showed increased activity within the amygdala when viewing images of fearful faces, however only extraverts showed increased amygdala activity from viewing images of happy faces (Canli et al., 2002). These two studies indicate that individual differences affect the roles of neural structures in relation to emotion (Adolphs et al., 1999; Canli et al., 2002). This suggests that neural structures may play varying roles in experiencing emotion depending on the person, meaning that research into the roles of neural structures needs to consider differences between individuals for their findings to be relevant. A case study into one individual may show certain roles of a neural structure in emotional processing, however in another person this role may be slightly different. NEURAL NETWORK MODELLING OF SPECIFIC EMOTIONS Previously, the majority of the research into the neural network modelling of emotion has differentiated positive versus negative affect. Recently however, neural network modelling of specific emotions is beginning to emerge (Levine, 2006). The emotions mainly focused on in this research are the ones that were distinguished by Ekman and Friesen (1971), as mentioned earlier. THE NEURAL BASIS OF ANGER Blair, Morris, Frith, Perrett and Dolan (1999) carried out a study into the neural basis of anger. To do this they exposed subjects to either neutral or increasingly angry facial expressions while analyzing the areas of brain activation associated with the gradient of the intensity of anger. Blair et al. (1999) found the right orbitofrontal cortex became increasingly active when subjects were exposed to increasingly angry faces. These results suggest that the orbitofrontal cortex plays a role in explicit emotional labelling of angry faces. The role of the orbitofrontal cortex was further demonstrated by Sander et al. (2005). Participants were presented with meaningless phrases spoken with neutral prosody in one ear, and with angry prosody in the other. Participants were told to either attend to one ear or the other. It was found that activity in the right amygdala and superior temporal sulcus was changed independent of attention. Alternatively, the orbitofrontal cortex was only activated when the angry prosody had been attended to. This finding implies further that the orbitofrontal cortex is important for the explicit processing of anger. What now should be investigated is whether, and to what extent, individual differences have an effect; this could potentially help people who have problems with their anger by identifying the differences so that a solution can be found. THE NEURAL BASIS OF SADNESS Using the same paradigm, Blair et al. (1999) also investigated the neural basis of sadness. They found both the left amygdala and the right temporal lobe demonstrated activity linked with the intensity of sad expressions. These findings have however been contradicted by other recent studies. Adolphs and Tranel (2004) used a more sensitive approach, which involved the participants rating the intensity of an emotion rather than labelling it. They found that damage in the right amygdala caused a greater deficit in identifying sad faces when compared to damage to the left amygdala. Adolphs and Tranel (2004) believed that this difference in conclusions may have been due to the more insightful approach. There has not been much agreement for the neural basis of sadness, therefore this is an area of emotion which requires further research so that the roles of neural structures can be clarified. THE NEURAL BASIS OF FEAR Fear conditioning has become the preferred method of investigating fear as the source of fear is unambiguous and the development of the fear response can be systematically investigated (Pinel, 2008). Romanski and LeDoux (1992) studied the neural mechanisms of auditory fear conditioning by creating lesions in the auditory pathways of rats. It was found that bilateral lesions of the medial geniculate nucleus blocked fear conditioning to a tone; bilateral lesions of the auditory cortex however did not. The findings suggest that signals created by the tone only have to be able to reach the medial geniculate nucleus, not the auditory cortex, for auditory fear conditioning to occur. This also indicates that a pathway plays a crucial role in fear conditioning, going from the medial geniculate cortex to a structure other than the auditory cortex; this structure was proved to be the amygdala (Romanski LeDoux, 1992). They then found that lesions in the amygdala also blocked fear conditioning. Romanski and LeDoux (1992) argued that just because auditory cortex lesions do not disrupt fear conditioning does not mean that this structure is not involved in auditory fear conditioning. This is because there are two pathways from the medial geniculate nucleus to the amygdala. These are the auditory thalamus, and the auditory cortex; the indirect one, capable of mediating fear conditioning to more complex sounds (Jarrell et al., 1987, as cited in Pinel, 2008). Similarly, Armony et al. (1997) proposed a brain-based neural network model of auditory fear conditioning. Included are parallel cortical and subcortical pathways, reaching the primary emotional processing areas of the amygdala, as also shown by LeDoux (1996). It has been found that the subcortical pathway is quicker than the cortical, however the cortex performs more precise discrimination than the thalamus pathway. This finding suggests that the two pathways are involved in performing complementary functions; the subcortical pathway is vital in the presence of potentially dangerous stimuli where a fast response is crucial, and the cortical pathway is more useful where more detailed evaluations of stimuli are needed (Armony et al., 1997). Studies into fear have continually identified the amygdala as the main brain structure involved in the acquisition, storage and expression of conditioned fear (Armony et al., 1995;1997, Romanski LeDoux, 1992), therefore the role of the amygdala in fear conditioning is a widely accepted and stable notion. THE NEURAL BASIS OF SURPRISE Not many studies have investigated the emotion of surprise, however it is believed that surprise has important survival value, and therefore must be accessed early in the course of sensory processing (Plutchik Kellerman, 1986). To enable this, direct inputs to the amygdala from primary pathways provide this access, modulated by the swift habituation of sensory evoked responses in the amygdala. Because of this rapid action, surprise tends to be a short lived emotion, which leads on to another emotional state (Plutchik Kellerman, 1986); potentially making surprise a difficult emotion to study. THE NEURAL BASIS OF DISGUST Generally throughout the study of the neural basis of disgust, there has been a broad consensus that at least one area, the anterior insula, is crucial for both the detection and feeling of disgust (Philips et al., 1998). Based on imaging studies, this conclusion is in line with a study on a patient with insula damage whom is incapable of detecting disgust within varying modalities (Calder, Keane, Manes, Antoun, Young, 2000). Wicker, Keysers, Plailly, Royet, Gallese and Rizzolatti (2003) supported these findings, and went even further by analysing neural responses while watching others experience disgust, and firsthand experience of disgust. It was observed that in both these conditions the same part of the anterior insula was activated. These findings suggest that maybe understanding the emotions of others could require stimulation, and mildly experiencing, the emotions ourselves. This also implies a potential role of emotion in empathy (Gazzaniga et al., 2009). These findings by Philips et al. (1998), Calder et al. (2000) and Wicker et al. (2003) provide evidence that the insula is a neural correlate of experiencing disgust directly. The study by Wicker et al. (2003) also shows that the insula is essential in identification of disgust in others. Therefore, this indicates that the insula plays a role in the emotion of disgust, however the importance of this role is unknown. NEURAL CORRELATES OF HAPPINESS, SADNESS AND DISGUST An investigation into the neuroanatomical correlates of happiness, sadness and disgust was carried out by Lane, Reiman, Ahern, Schwartz and Davidson (1997). They used positron emission tomography to measure regional brain activity during exposure to happiness, sadness and disgust induced by film and recall. They found that happiness, sadness and disgust were all linked with increased activity in the thalamus and the medial frontal cortex, and also activation of anterior and posterior temporal structures, mainly when the emotions were induced by film. When sadness was recalled this linked with increased activation in the anterior insula; happiness was distinguished from sadness through greater activity around the ventral mesial frontal cortex. Lane et al. (1997) concluded that there seem to be a number of regions in the brain that are involved in emotions, with different combinations of structures concerned in feeling and identifying different emotions. This finding backs up LeDouxà ¢Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¡Ã‚ ¬Ãƒ ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚ ¢s (1996) reluctance to conclude that the amygdala is the centre of emotional reaction. EVALUATION OF METHODS Positron emission tomography (PET) is a technique often used in studies investigating co-morbidity. It provides images of brain activity, however these images are not of the brain, they are merely coloured maps giving an indication of the amount of radioactivity in the brain (Pinel, 2008). This means that it can only be estimated how much activity there is in each particular part of the brain, and therefore it is not a particularly accurate method of measuring brain activity in specific regions (Pinel, 2008). Another commonly used method of investigating brain activity in cognitive neuroscience is functional MRI (fMRI). The main strength of fMRI is that it provides both structural and functional information about the brain in one image (Posner Raichel, 1997), therefore revealing the brain function. This gives it an advantage over PET as a more precise image is produced (Pinel, 2008). Other advantages of this method over PET are that it provides a better spatial resolution, and three-dimensional images can be produced showing activity in the entire brain (Pinel, 2008). This information suggests that studies into the role of neural structures in emotion may be more reliable if the evidence comes from fMRI measurements, as a more accurate indication of which brain regions are activated at a certain time is given. CONCLUSION Through examining the literature surrounding the role of neural structures in emotion, it can be concluded that neural structures do play an important role. However, the significance of the role of neural structures in comparison to other factors, such as individual differences is still not clear. It has been proposed that neural structures have differing functions in the experience of emotion depending on the individual (Adolphs et al., 1999; Canli et al., 2002). This suggests that further research is needed in the field of individual differences to find these underlying factors, so that the function of neural structures can be more fully understood. Many challenges are faced in the study of emotion, as it is a behaviour that is difficult to define, manipulate and study with a scientific approach (Gazzaniga et al., 2009). Even so, investigation into the cognitive neuroscience of emotion has generally emphasized the importance of the role of the amygdala. The function of this structure in the response of emotion has been greatly influenced by research into animals; in both humans and other species the fact that the amygdala plays a vital role in the fear response has been demonstrated (Gazzaniga et al., 2009). The role of the amygdala is not the only structure researched in trying to identify the neural correlates involved in emotion, as recently different emotions have successfully been associated with other neural structures, including the orbitofrontal cortex in anger (Blair et al., 1999), and the insula, involved in disgust (Wicker et al., 2003). Nevertheless, an emerging change in the way the cognitive neuroscience of emotion is moving the emphasis from the study of individual neural structures to the investigation of neural systems (Gazzaniga et al., 2009). It is clear that the amygdala, orbitofrontal cortex and insula are vital in the processing of emotion. It is now important that in order to enable how the brain produces both normal and adaptive emotional responses to be understood, the way that these structures interact together (with each other and with other brain regions) and the effect of individual differences needs to be investigated. FURTHER READING Gazzaniga, M. S., Ivry, R. B., Mangun, G. R. (2009). (See References). Gives a general overview of the neural networks involved in emotion, particularly the amygdala. Plutchik, R. Kellerman, H. (1986). (See References). Gives more in depth detail of the networks involved in specific emotions. Sergerie, K., Chochol, C., Armony, J. L. (2008). (See References). Looks at previous research into the role of the amygdala in emotional processing which gives new information regarding previously proposed models.

Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and the World :: World War II History

Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and the World Einstein first told president Roosevelt about the tremendous power of fused uranium in the late 1930's. Soon after this news from Einstein the atom bomb was built and tested. With bombs ready, Truman is faced with a decision. America is in the middle of World War II with no end in sight. He decides to deploy two atomic bombs on two Japanese cities. Hiroshima and Nagasaki were the two fateful cities. The atomic bombs give relief to America because it ends the war. Even though America wins the war they defeat the whole purpose of keeping the world secure by bringing turbulence not only to Japan, but the rest of the world. Truman stops the torture and death for American soldiers fighting in the war. Truman, though, showed total disregard for the well being of the world. Uranium was the explosive used in both bombs. The explosion of an atomic bomb is equal to 15,000 tons of TNT. In the bomb, a piece of uranium is propelled into a larger piece of uranium and they fuse into a phase called critical mass. After this a chain reaction of fission occurs. In fission, atoms are split, and neutrons hit each other causing supplementary fission. Fission causes an enormous amount of energy in the form of extreme heat, a massive shock wave, and the lasting effect of radiation. As soon as the bomb explodes a wave of heat ranging from 1,000 to 15,000 degrees engulfs everything in a mile radius. The shock wave destroyed most of the buildings within the mile radius. After the blast, radiation from gamma rays and neutrons cause death and injury. The bombs caused death in Japan and feelings of insecurity for the remainder of the world. The bomb called," Little Boy," was dropped on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945 at approximately 8:15 a.m. Three days before the bombing fliers were dropped from aircrafts warning Hiroshima that they were going to be victims of a destructive weapon. The bomb was dropped from the altitude of six miles by a B-52 bomber named Enola Gay. The bomb exploded a thousand feet from ground. It leveled five square city miles. In this bombing 70,000 innocent people died. It was said that everybody in the city lost somebody. After the blast a metal lunch pale of a schoolgirl was found about 1,000 feet from the blast, she was not.

My Worldview: Answers to the Questions of Origin, Purpose ,and Destiny

A worldview is a personal insight about the reality and meaning of life. We all see ourselves through a particular set of beliefs, attitudes, and values. Each persons worldview develops overtime as he or she experiences new events and interacts with the world that surrounds them. A worldview provides the answers to one’s origin, purpose, and destiny. Religion has a powerful influence on one’s worldview. For the Christian, the filter for which all information is processed is shaped by the truths found in God. The truth of God cannot be ignored as God has revealed himself in many ways. The Scripture is one way that God reveals himself to humankind. The Bible is God’s written revelation to humankind. There is a central theme that flows from the beginning to the end of the Bible. That theme is one of redemption and is key to my worldview. The first chapter of the Bible tells us, â€Å" In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth† (Genesis 1:1 New International Version). Let us start here, in the beginning, as we start to form a worldview based on Biblical facts. The universe did not simply appear out of nothing. God is the Creator of the universe and all that exists in the universe; including humankind. Because God is the creator, he is self-existent and is therefore greater than anything that was created. God has a Creator-creature relationship with humankind. Through creation God revealed his divine nature to humankind. He is infallible, truthful, just, holy, omnipresence, omniscience, and omnipotent. The will of God speaks to the sovereign authority God has over creation. God is in control of everything that happens. God formed a covenant with creation in which all creation was promised eternal life in exchange for obedien... ...s from our sins and to save us from going to hell. Because God also gave us free will, we have to make the decision to spend eternity in heaven and we need to make that decision before it is too late. My worldview has been a long and personal journey. I have not always lived with the Spirit in my heart. I have always believed in God but have not always had a strong relationship with God. A walk through the Word of God has shown me that God has always had a plan and has always taken the first steps in having a relationship with me. I see through my worldview that the Bible lays out God’s plan for my redemption. Through God’s redemption I now have a worldview that supplies the answers to the questions of origin, purpose ,and destiny. Works Cited Zondervan NIV Study Bible. Fully rev. ed. Kenneth L. Barker, gen. ed. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2008. Print. My Worldview: Answers to the Questions of Origin, Purpose ,and Destiny A worldview is a personal insight about the reality and meaning of life. We all see ourselves through a particular set of beliefs, attitudes, and values. Each persons worldview develops overtime as he or she experiences new events and interacts with the world that surrounds them. A worldview provides the answers to one’s origin, purpose, and destiny. Religion has a powerful influence on one’s worldview. For the Christian, the filter for which all information is processed is shaped by the truths found in God. The truth of God cannot be ignored as God has revealed himself in many ways. The Scripture is one way that God reveals himself to humankind. The Bible is God’s written revelation to humankind. There is a central theme that flows from the beginning to the end of the Bible. That theme is one of redemption and is key to my worldview. The first chapter of the Bible tells us, â€Å" In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth† (Genesis 1:1 New International Version). Let us start here, in the beginning, as we start to form a worldview based on Biblical facts. The universe did not simply appear out of nothing. God is the Creator of the universe and all that exists in the universe; including humankind. Because God is the creator, he is self-existent and is therefore greater than anything that was created. God has a Creator-creature relationship with humankind. Through creation God revealed his divine nature to humankind. He is infallible, truthful, just, holy, omnipresence, omniscience, and omnipotent. The will of God speaks to the sovereign authority God has over creation. God is in control of everything that happens. God formed a covenant with creation in which all creation was promised eternal life in exchange for obedien... ...s from our sins and to save us from going to hell. Because God also gave us free will, we have to make the decision to spend eternity in heaven and we need to make that decision before it is too late. My worldview has been a long and personal journey. I have not always lived with the Spirit in my heart. I have always believed in God but have not always had a strong relationship with God. A walk through the Word of God has shown me that God has always had a plan and has always taken the first steps in having a relationship with me. I see through my worldview that the Bible lays out God’s plan for my redemption. Through God’s redemption I now have a worldview that supplies the answers to the questions of origin, purpose ,and destiny. Works Cited Zondervan NIV Study Bible. Fully rev. ed. Kenneth L. Barker, gen. ed. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2008. Print.

Jean Piaget’s Cognitive Theory Essay

The Cognitive Development Theory was first identified by Jean Piaget. Jean Piaget was born on August 9, 1896 in Neuchà ¢tel, Switzerland. Piaget became well known by the many papers he published throughout his late teen years. Once graduating from the University of Neuchà ¢tel, he received his Ph.D. in natural science and published two philosophical essay concerning adolescence. These two essays later became the general orientation for the first publication of the Cognitive Development Theory. According to the Jean Piaget Society by Les Smith, Piaget was married to Valentine Chà ¢tenay and soon after had three children. These children where primary examples of the study Piaget was doing concerning with the development from infancy to language. After the age of eighty-five, the Swiss psychologist died in Geneva on 1980, making him one of the most significant psychologists of the twentieth century. The objective of the theory was, and still is, the explanation by which the process o f an infant, and then child develops into an adult that can both reason and comprehend. Saul McLeod published an article, â€Å"Jean Piaget†, in the website Simply Psychology, where he quoted Piaget, â€Å"Cognitive development is a progressive reorganization of mental processes as a result of biological maturation and environmental experience. Children construct an understanding of the world around them, [and] then experience discrepancies between what they already know and what they discover in their environment† (McLeod 2). There are three basic components to Piaget’s Cognitive Theory: Schemas, the four processes that enable the transition from one stage to another, and the four stages of cognitive development. When starting with the Schema, Piaget described this word as a basic building block of intelligent behavior that a person would use by forming information using what the person saw, heard, smelled and touched. In the article, â€Å"Jean Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development†, from ICELS.ca Blog explains how a schema can be thought of as a unit of knowledge, relating to one aspect of the world including objects, actions, and abstract concepts (Unknown 4). An example of schema is how a child will know how to grab his favorite rattle and put into his mouth because he has  gained knowledge of what that object was used for. Dr. George Boeree, author of Jean Piaget, describes how a toddler that is introduced to a new object will use his â€Å"grab and thrust† schema. Dr. Boeree calls this assimilation; the toddler is relating the old schema onto the new object (Boeree 3). The child after knowing how to react with his rattle is then puzzled with the new object in front of him, he does not know how to react and therefore uses the same schema as he would with the rattle, putting the object into his mouth. However if the existing schema does not work, the toddler has to find a new approach, this is known as accommodation. Accommodation occurs when there has been an unpleasant state of disequilibrium. Equilibrium occurs when a child’s schemas can deal with most new information through assimilation. McLeod clarifies the steps in as the four processes than enable the transition from one cognitive stage to another: Assimilation Equilibration New Situation Disequilibrium Accommodation When Piaget continued to study the each of these steps more carefully, he began to see similarities between most of the children in their nature and their timing. This became the development of the stages of cognitive development. The first stage of the cognitive development is the sensorimotor stage which can be found from the ages of zero until approximately two. In this stage the key feature is object permanence meaning how the infant uses his senses and motor abilities to understand the world. In the article, â€Å"Development of using experimenter-given cues in infant chimpanzees: longitudinal change in behavior and cognitive development†, found in Developmental Science, author Sanae Okamoto-Barth states, â€Å"Jean Piaget conducted experiments with human infants which led him to conclude that object permanence was typically achieved around seven to eight months of age† ( Okamoto-Barth 100). He clarifies how this cognitive skill develops in infants through a fixed series of steps with characteristic transitional errors. Throughout this stage there are three reactions that occur: primary circular reaction, secondary circular reaction, and tertiary circular reaction. Between the age of one to four months, the child has the primary circular reaction. In this reaction the child responds with the same action with the object. Dr. Boeree uses the example of a baby sucking on her them, because it feels good she continues to do it (Boeree 3). Between four to twelve months the infant now  uses secondary circulation which involves with the infants surroundings. Dr. Boeree’s example is a rubber ducky that the infant squeezes; the duck makes a â€Å"quack† entertaining the infant and wanting to continue the squeezing in order to get the same response again. As Okamoto-Barth stated this is the part in which object permanence is found. This ability can be recognized when the infant understands that just because an object is out of sight it does not been that it is gone, non-existent. The experiment used to know if the child had this ability was by doing the Blanket and Ball Experiment (McLeod 4). In this experiment Piaget would have a ball in front of the child and once the child got interested with the ball, he would cover it up with the blanket. The deal was to know if the child still believed in the existence on the ball or if he believed it was gone and no longer existed. Infants of a younger age would go about and entertain themselves with different objects in their surroundings, while infants that achieved object permanence would uncover the blanket and find the ball. The third reaction found in the sensorimotor stage is the tertiary circular reaction. This can be found from the ages of one to two. This is when they start to perform trial-and-error experimentations. An example of this reaction would be when a child may try out different sounds or actions as a way of getting attention from his caregiver (Unknown 4). Children also begin to develop symbols to represent events or objects and during this time the child is quickly moving towards the mental representation and mental combination (Okamoto 105). In this occasion, the infant becomes outstanding in pretending. For example the infant will now talk, feed, and play wit h a doll unlike before where she would just suck on it or throw it around. Once these examples are shown in an infant, the preoperational stage is now in place. The preoperational stage happens during the ages of two to seven. Although the child cannot think logically yet, he is acquiring language in a fast pace and is able to represent the work through mental images and symbols. However these images and symbols are only on his perception. The key feature in this stage is egocentrism. Egocentric is when a child sees things pretty much from one point of view, his own (Boeree 4). Piaget used the experiment of the Three Mountains in order to see if the child is in the preoperational stage or has advanced into the next stage. In this experiment children were  asked to choose a picture that showed the scene which they had observed as well as a picture in which what Piaget had seen. Children almost always chose their own view of the mountain. According to McLeod, children experienced this task difficult because they are unable to take on another person’s perspective (McLeod 4). In this stage children also develop curiosity and the questio ns begin. Children tend to make up explanations when they do not have an answer because they only know so little of the world. The third stage of the cognitive theory is the concrete operation stage which varies from the ages of seven to eleven. In this stage logic begins to play a part in the child’s life. Piaget defines a mental operation as an interiorized action, an action performed in the mind (McLeod 4). The mental operations allow the child to think about what he has done or will do. This also permits the child to have the ability to count from one to ten. The key feature in this stage is conservation and the experiment behind this is the Conservation of Numbers. According to Dr. Boeree, conservation refers to the idea that a quality remains the same despite changes in appearance (Boeree 5). The experiment that Piaget conducted was putting four marbles in a row and four below those. The child would then see that the marbles were the same distance from each other and say they were identical. However, on the other side the top row would have more distance between each other than the bottom. A chi ld that was still in the preoperational stage would look at this and believe that that row had more than all the others. On the other hand, a concrete operations child would know that there are still four marbles and that the extent ion of the distance between each marble did not make a difference. Children learn to understand numbers, mass, area, weight, and volume; although they may not be able to achieve them all at the same time (McLeod 6). They can now mentally reverse the direction of their thoughts and learn how to add and subtract. The child can memorize and trace his way home or remember where was the last place they left an object. Finally, the formal operational stage is the last stage of the cognitive development. This stage begins at the age of eleven on to adulthood. During this time, people develop the ability to sustain abstract concepts, such as logical thoughts, deductive reasoning, and systematic planning (Okamoto 108). The person can now comprehend all the possible ways in which he can solve a problem and can approach it in different points of view. The experiment done in this stage is the Pendulum Task, and it is used to find the key feature of manipulation of ideas in the head, such as abstract reasoning. The pendulum task consist of three factors, the length of the string, the heaviness of the weight, and the strength of the push in order to determine the speed of swing of the pendulum. The idea was to try the experimental method of using one same variable every time. If a teenager would tried different lengths with different weights is likely to be getting the wrong answer. Dr. Boeree states that there are four possible ways: conjunction, disjunction, implication, and incompatibility. In this experiment, conjunction is when both the string’s length and the pendulum’s weight make a difference. Disjunction would be with it is either the length or the weight but not both. Implication is the formation of a hypothesis, if this happens then this will occur. Lately, incompatibility is when the cause does not make an effect that was first hypothesized. McLeod quotes, â€Å"Operate on operations not just concrete objects† (McLeod 6). This simply means that the person has developed an inner value system and a sense of moral judgment that will be necessary for life purposes. When it comes to schools and learning abilities, harmless experiments can be used on a child in order to know what stage he or she is in and how the school administration, teachers, and other staffs can help the child out in his learning. At times a child that takes these experiments can excel and is then placed in a higher level where he or she can learn at his pace. When a child is put in a lower class level, he can tend to get bored and then will have no need no drive to want to excel to his abilities. These experiments can also help children when they have dyslexia and need accommodations for their learning skills. Knowing and understanding these stages is not only beneficial for the students and children but also for the adults. Parents, teachers, and other adults can understand how a child best learns and that  way attend them with individual learning, flexibility in the curriculum, and play with them to increase the child’s learning development. Jean Piaget was a curious person when it came to children and how they their minds developed. He has changed how people view the children’s world and the methods in which children are studied. His ideas were put to use to understand and be able to communication with children, pertaining to the educational field. In the cognitive development theory, schema occurs first followed by the four stages of development: Sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational. Bibliography Boeree, George C. â€Å"Jean Piaget.† Personality Theories (2006). Web. 21 Oct. 2013. http://www.piaget.org/aboutPiaget.html. McLeod, Saul. â€Å"Jean Piaget- Cognitive Theory.† Simply Psychology (2009). Web. 15 Oct. 2013. http://www.simplypsychology.org/piaget.html. Okamoto. Sanae Barth, et al. â€Å"Development Of Using Experimenter-Given Cues In Infant Chimpanzees: Longitudinal Changes In Behavior And Cognitive Development.† Developmental Science 11.1 (2008): 98-108. Academic Search Premier. Web. 14 Oct. 2013. Unknown. â€Å"Jean Piaget’s Stage of Cognitive Development.† ICELS Blog (2013). Web. 21 Oct. 2013. http://www.icels-educators-for-learning.ca/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=46&Itemid=61.

Animal abuse Essay

When Richard Acton was young he had a neighbor. The neighbor was on the small side. It always seemed as if he was getting bullied. He was so shy, he always stayed in his house. He was seldom seen in the yard playing or anything. And if he appeared in the yard, he would not stay out long. One day Richard asked his parents about him, and what they thought. They told Richard to sit down that they needed to explain something to him. They said â€Å"there are people out there in our world that do things to others just to hurt them. They do it because they are sick or maybe enjoy it. Some just do it because that is all they know. People will really never fully understand why it happens, but it does.† The situation is termed abuse. The definition of abuse is â€Å"to use ill; to maltreat; to misuse; to use with bad motives or to wrong purposes; as, to abuse rights or privileges† (Webster, N/A). see more:types of animal cruelty The fact is this occurs all around the world. â€Å"Animal cruelty or abuse can be either deliberate abuse or simply the failure to take care of an animal. Either way, and whether the animal is a pet, a farm animal, or wildlife, the victim can suffer terribly† (Humane Society of The United States, 2011). Animal abuse is a growing problem in today’s society, and it needs to be stopped. As humankind has progressed, there has been an increase in governance and rules and regulations of everyday life. These rules and regulations are implemented as a result of various situation that occur around the world. One such rapidly growing concern is the concept of animal cruelty. Animal abuse is cruel unwarranted treatment of animals. Such treatment has one focus to subject animals and sometimes pets to unnecessary harm and pain. The increasing number of cruelty cases reported daily in the media is only the beginning of reported animal abuse. Most cases are never reported, and most animal suffering goes unrecognized and unabated. Although there is no national reporting system for animal abuse, media reports suggest that it is common in rural and urban areas. Cruelty and neglect can also cross socio-economic boundaries. While many people would like to think animal cruelty no longer exist, what people fail to realize is that it is still happening all over the world today. The treatment of animals is completely unethical. Ethics is defined as, â€Å"A system of moral principles; a system of rules for regulating the actions and manners of men in society† (ethics. 2014. In Noah Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language. , n.d.). We live in a world governed by ethics and the concept or right and wrong. This is why animal cruelty in today society is so unreal. The fact animals are still regarded as a product rather than living breathing creatures is morally wrong. Unfortunately our morals don’t extend to animals. Although many people claim that they are against animal cruelty they still see animals as forms of entertainment, clothing, and experiments which is complete unethical. Animals are not ours to use. Some may argue that because animals do not think and act like a human being, that they should not be treated like them; therefore, animals should not have rights, or be treated as fairly as a human. â€Å"The concept of rights to animals on the grounds that they have similar  physiological and mental capacities as infants or disabled human beings† (Wilson, N/A). They are wrong because animals are living, breathing creatures that were placed on Earth for a reason, the same as humans. Does an innocent animal feel the need to abuse, beat, and kill a human being because the human is not an animal, like itself? No. Therefore, it should not be okay for any human to beat and kill an animal because the animal is not human. So in an ideal world, animal cruelty would not exist. But, this is not an ideal world, and animals, domesticated and wild, are abused and beaten every single day. Should animals have rights? Yes, they should. All animals have nervous systems; they can feel, both physically and emotionally, therefore, it should be illegal to abuse any animal, not just  domesticated ones. Every day in the United States animals are beaten, neglected, or forced to struggle for survival. Left in unsanitary conditions with no food or water, they have little hope as they live out their days without the compassion they deserve. â€Å"It’s even more so when we realize that the everyday choices we make—such as what we eat for lunch and the kind of shampoo we buy—may be directly supporting some of this abuse† (People for the treatment of animals, N/A). Some are found and rescued, given the chance to experience how great life and humans can be; others are not so lucky. To grow as a nation, we must fight for these abused animals’ rights and severely punish heartless owners. It is up to us to speak for these creatures who lack a voice, for who will if we don’t? One of the first steps in protecting animals and  ­creating effective cruelty laws is knowing what animal cruelty actually is. There are two categories: passive cruelty and active cruelty. First  ­involves acts of omission, meaning the abuse happens as a result of neglect or lack of action. Passive cruelty might seem less serious, but that is not the case; it can lead to terrible pain and suffering, and ultimat ely death. Examples include starvation, dehydration, and untreated parasite infestations, inadequate shelter in extreme weather conditions, and the failure to get medical care. Passive cruelty is sometimes due to the owner’s ignorance, so many animal control officers will first try to educate neglectful owners on how to properly care for animals before giving them a citation or placing them under arrest. Active cruelty, on the other hand, is more well-known and disturbing. Sometimes referred to as non-accidental injury, this type of abuse involves purposefully inflicting harm on an animal in order to feel more powerful or gain control. Active cruelty against animals should be taken very seriously, since it can be a sign that a person has serious psychological issues and may commit more acts of violence – possibly against humans. It’s not only up to the legal system to ensure that communities across the country are aware and educated about animal cruelty. There are plenty of things everyday citizens can do. The simplest action is for people to take care of their own pets and learn the facts so they can educate others on proper animal care. Another easy way to help is by donating to or volunteering at a local animal shelter. Contrary  to popular belief, volunteering doesn’t require a lot of time; simply going in a few hours a week helps. Finally, by writing letters you can remind your local lawmakers that animal abuse is a real problem that needs to be addressed. â€Å"In media-reported animal cruelty cases, dogs–and pit bull-type dogs, in particular are the most common victims of animal cruelty. Of 1,880 cruelty cases reported in the media, 64 percent involved dogs, 18 percent involved cats and 25 percent involved other animals† (Humane Society of The United States, 2011). â€Å"More American households have pets than children. More money is spent on pet food than on baby food. There are more dogs in the U.S. than people in most countries in Europe-and more cats and dogs. A child growing up in the U.S. is more likely to have a pet than a live in father† (American Humane Association para 2,3, 2013). Know who to call to report animal abuse. If unsure who to contact. Contact your local police department at 618-826-5000 or call 911 if it is an emergency. Get to know and look out for the animals in your neighborhood. Start a Neighborhood Watch Program. Fight for strong anti-cruelty laws on federal, state and the local level. Set a good example for others to follow. Talk to your kids about how to treat animals with kindness and respect. And what is believed to be the most important, support your local shelter or animal rescue organization. It is a wonderful way to make a difference. Funding is an important issue when it comes to animal abuse. Most agencies that handle the calls for animal abuse are very understaffed. They also rely on support from others. Some agencies rely on grants to fund their operation to help rescue abused animal. Grants can be obtained from agencies such as the Animal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA). The ASPCA Anti-Cruelty grant program supports private organizations and public  agencies dedicated to the prevention and elimination of animal cruelty throughout the United States. Every state in the United States and the District of Columbia has a law prohibiting cruelty to animals. These laws  do not give animals rights, but do afford some legal protection. The purposes of these laws is to deter violence by humans in any form as well as to protect animals from mistreatment and cruelty by imposing a penalty for those acts. Most of these laws fall under the purpose of morality, meaning the purpose is not to protect the animals, but to keep people on the straight and narrow. Whatever the reason, many more states are recognizing that animal cruelty, neglect and abuse are serious issues. There are now 41 states plus the District of Columbia with felony provisions for animal cruelty 32 plus DC with â€Å"Felony† specifically stated in the statute, 8 with felony punishments attached, but the status of the crime is not specifically defined. Animal abuse comes in all forms, from physical abuse to simple neglect. Both intentional/malicious abuse and neglect or passive abuse may be tough to spot as laws defining what constitutes animal abuse can be vague and differ from municipality to municipality. Before reporting abuse, one must evaluate the entire situation to determine whether or not abuse is actually occurring. Make sure all the facts are in order. One of the best solution in order to stop the awful trend is to teach a child while they are still young on how to treat an animals. Keeping in mind that they are the future, teaching a young child can help reduce the problem. Many agree on the educational value that owning a pet could have on a child. People aren’t always able to relate to animal, as humans, were not born with the ability to know how to treat animals. A recent statistic shows that kids who partake in animal abuse, may, as they get older abuse others and their belongings. This is not necessary saying that your child is the next serial killer or murderer but helping them understand early on the rights and wrongs when having contact with an animal could help. Showing children what a happy pet looks like, so they care more for their pet’s emotions. Parents often don’t take the time to teach the child rights and wrongs when caring for an animal. They need to make sure they set limitations when a child and pet are left alone. Teach your child early on and they will be able to help stop animal abuse. Another great solution is, educating ourselves on proper pet care, we also educate others by sharing the knowledge. In most situations, people have the right idea in  mind when it comes to pets, but they are not always well educated in proper pet care, and sometimes don’t notice the risk they put their animals in. Pet education is key. If planning on stopping animal abuse it is needed to identify early what is the cause of the abuse and also help the abusers. â€Å"Studies show that males are 94% more likely to commit the abuse towards animals. Minors, under the age of 18, were 31% likely to abuse animals.  Also, animal abuse is 21% more likely in families that involve family violence† (Andrea, 1999). Every living thing has a heart and feelings, God put animals on earth for us to enjoy, not to abuse. We all need someone to love and to care for. Why not a pet? With a pet, the key is to educate our young on how to treat them. With this education it can be passed on where one day animal abuse will be stopped. References American Humane Association para 2,3. (2013). Retrieved from American Humane Association: http://www.americanhumane.org/interaction/support-the-bond/fact-sheets/animal-abuse-domestic-violence.html Andrea, L. (1999, Feburay). We Speak For Them para5. Retrieved from http://animalabuseitneedstostop.weebly.com/index.html ethics. 2014. In Noah Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language. . (n.d.). Retrieved from ethics. 2014. In Noah Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language. : ethics. 2014. In Noah Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary of the English Language. Humane Society of The United States. (2011). Retrieved from Humane Society of The United States para 4: http://www.humanesociety.org/issues/abuse_neglect/facts/animal_cruelty_facts_statistics.html People for the treatment of animals. (N/A, Para 2). Retrieved from PETA: http://www.peta.org/issues/ Webster. (N/A). abuse,1828 Webster Dictionary. Retrieved from http://www.1828.mshaffer. com/ Wilson, S. (N/A). Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Retrieved from IEP para 4: http://www.iep.utm.edu/anim-eth/