Real Estate Values in San Diego County

In this paper, I’m going to talk about what cities and areas of San Diego have higher real estate prices and higher incomes and why. Although the average home value in San Diego county is higher than most of the rest of the country, there is still a large spread in average home values. The average income in San Diego county is in the top ten percent in the country. Like home values, incomes vary greatly from place to place within the county, ranging from around $11,000 to around $110,000.According to a survey done in 2009, a region dubbed â€Å"North County Coastal† is the most wealthy region of San Diego. this area extends from Del Mar to Oceanside. This is consistent with the general trend of coastal property being more desirable and therefore wealthy people living in them. However, Imperial Beach, while having coastal property, has both a low average income and home value relative to the rest of the county. Rancho Santa Fe is the wealthiest census designated place in San Diego. It is not located on the coast.It is a part of the â€Å"North County Coastal† region. It is surrounded by other wealthy communities. The location alone is not enough to explain why Rancho Santa Fe is as an expensive of a place to live as it is. There are places like Chula Vista with comparable landscapes. The pattern of wealth distribution in San Diego County appears to be that wealthy communities are built around other wealthy communities. These places are found in a thin coastal strip in the northwest and west-central parts of the county.This pattern could be extended to explain why this strip is situated closer to Orange County than it is to the Mexican border. Patterns of home value do not completely follow natural-physical desirability but are influenced by them. The places is San Diego County with the lowest home values are found in the far east county, outside of the San Diego Urban Area. The Two cities in San Diego county with the lowest home value are Bo rrego Springs and Campo. The lower value of these homes can be explained by their rural location.The average home values in these cities are around $150,000 compared to over $1. 5 million in Rancho Santa Fe. The lowest income cities in the county include National City, El Cajon and Lemon grove. There is a strong parallel between high median incomes and high median home prices in San Diego county. That parallel does exist with low median incomes and median home values. The median home value in El Cajon is more than double the median home value in Borrego Springs even though the median income is higher in Borrego Springs.This can be explained by the general higher cost of living in urban areas. What I have found in this project is that there are many factors contributing to where different income groups and home values are located. I also found that there are interests that intend to mislead. One survey, published in 2009 by the county of San Diego, gave home values and net worths tha t the fine print said were from 2005. It seams that some try to make things look better than they are and that others try to avoid being profiled.These to factors were the biggest obstacles in researching for this project. â€Å"San Diego Metro Home Prices and Home Values in CA – Zillow Local Info. † Zillow – Real Estate, Homes for Sale, Home Prices & Values. Web. 21 Nov. 2011. . â€Å"California Locations by per Capita Income. † Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 25 Nov. 2011. . â€Å"Formal and Fina San Diego Transfer of wealth study†-San Diego county http://www. energizingentrepreneurs. org/content/images/File/Formal%20and%20Final%20San%20Diego%20Transfer%20of%20wealth%20study-%20pdf. pdf

Phonic Instruction

Reading and writing are the fundamental skills of learning. Our formal education is anchored to these basic learning steps. It is crucial for children to learn how to read and write at an early age in order to become capable and competent in their education. Kids acquire and learn the language through exposure, like how children copy words based from what they hear around their environment. Schools developed various methods and modes of instruction on how to teach children to read and write effectively.This teaching method is often referred to as phonic instruction which is a way of teaching children how to read, which emphasizes the acquisition of sounds, corresponding letter and its use in reading and writing (National Reading Panel, 2000). The phonic instruction shows the children the relationship between the written and spoken language by associating sounds to letters (National Institute for Literacy, 2009). The phonic instruction is not a standard device used for beginning reade rs but many teachers are utilizing such program to aid them with their instruction.The phonics that the teachers teach is not relatively important, but rather what students actually learn and use in decoding a new word whether reading or writing them is more necessary (Cunningham, 2005). As such, the aim of phonic instruction is for children to learn how to read and write effectively. Phonic instruction affects the whole process of children’s learning process of reading. It helps students understand how it can be successfully integrated into an effective classroom reading program (Savage, 2007).I personally agree that phonic instructions develop the ability to read and write. It does not matter what modes and methods of learning is integrated in the phonics instruction but how children may be able to learn how to read and write effectively. Teachers should develop balanced reading programs which incorporate a wide array of learning strategies in order to prepare children in h igher levels of education which require such skills. References Cuningham, P. M. (2005).Phonics they Use: Words for Reading and Writing, 4th edition. Boston: Allyn & Bacon. National Institute for Literacy. (2009, January 9). Phonics Instruction. Retrieved February 11, 2009, from http://www. nifl. gov/partnershipforreading/publications/reading_first1phonics. html. National Reading Panel. (2000). Phonics Instructions. Reading Rockets. Retrieved February 11, 2009, from http://www. readingrockets. org/article/254. Savage, J. (2007). Sound It Out! Phonics in a Comprehensive Reading System. New York: McGraw-Hill.

Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Law - Essay Example By a majority, the Court of Appeal had allowed the receivers appeal against Judge Maddocks decision upholding this claim. In Mainstream Properties Ltd v Young the Court of Appeal had dismissed the claimant property developers appeal against the rejection of its claim against the sixth defendant, De Winter, for interference with the employment contracts between the claimant and two of its employees, Young and Broad, in providing finance for property developments, the opportunities for which Young and Broad had diverted to companies which they had formed without their employers knowledge or agreement. De Winter had relied on assurances from Young and Broad that no conflict of interest with their duties as employees and directors of the claimant was involved. The economic tort claims in Douglas v Hello! Ltd were perhaps the least publicised issue in the protracted litigation over the publication in Hello! Magazine of illicitly taken photographs of the New York wedding of the film stars Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones in 2001, they having granted exclusive rights to publish approved photographs to the OK! Magazine. Among the issues raised the best known is almost certainly Douglas and Zeta-Jones claim that this involved an infringement of their right to privacy. That was not in issue before the House of Lords where OK! Ltd appealed against the lower courts rejection of their economic tort claims against Hello! Ltd. The judgement of the Court of Appeal delivered by Lord Phillips MR focused on the ‘unlawful interference’ tort and contains an extended consideration of the meaning of ‘intention’ in the economic torts. While both Lindsay J at first instance and Lord Phillips made some observations on both types of the economic tort liability for conspiracy, no reference is made to this tort in the speeches in the House of Lords. The greater part

TEEN DRINKING AND DRIVING Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

TEEN DRINKING AND DRIVING - Research Paper Example As a result, this paper, therefore, explores the issues that are concerned with these problems, the consequences, and suggestions on the best way forward. Background Information Most states within US have a zero tolerance when it comes to teenage drinking where some states even have an outline of the maximum blood and alcohol concentration levels for teenagers. As such, the limit is set to be at 0.001% for all teenage drivers, which translates to no drinking. The law does not allow teenagers and other persons who may not have attained the required drinking age of 21 in all the states to purchase alcoholic beverage or to be found in possession of alcoholic beverages. However, the CDC reports that teenagers in the United States abuse of Alcohol more than tobacco and other illegal drugs, which proves it beyond reasonable doubt that indulgence in alcohol and subsequent driving under the influence of alcohol poses serious problems to them and the society. In addition, CDC reports that the number (percentage) of teenagers who are in high school indulging in alcohol abuse, and driving under the influence of alcohol has reduced by more than half since 1991. ... However, CDC provides facts on teenage drinking in the United States showing that the rate of teenagers who are driving under the influence of alcohol, or who are driving, as well as consuming alcohol to have reduced by 54 per cent as from 1991 (â€Å"Teen drinking and driving†). Currently, the number of high school teenagers engaging in drunk driving is reportedly about 2.4 million persons every month. In the year 2010, reports indicate that one in every five teenage drivers, who were involved in fatal motor vehicle accidents, had alcohol in their blood streams. These important research findings shows that big strides have been taken to eliminate this problem from the society, but a lot needs to be done to reduce it further and consequently eliminate the menace. It has been suggested in some quarters that the key to eliminating the menace revolves around involving the parents of teenagers, lowering the minimum drinking age, and enacting punitive laws that are zero tolerant am ongst others. It has also been suggested that the driving licensing system should adopt the graduated driving licensing system (Peden et al 112). Minimum Drinking Age In the United States, the minimum drinking Age is 21, as opposed to most countries that have set their drinking age at 18, but there have been considerations by most states to lower the drinking age to below 21. Many young people indulging in alcohol abuse and driving under the influence of alcohol most often undergo painful consequences, which have raised concerns as to whether lowering the minimum drinking age is likely to lead to a reduction of the occurrences or eliminate the problem altogether. Maisto et al 417 showed that in 1999, the minimum drinking age in New Zealand was lowered from 20 to18. Consequently, in the

Analytic Hierarchy Process artical review and comparison Essay

Analytic Hierarchy Process artical review and comparison - Essay Example According to the article, a business process strategy is designed in such a way that success is achieved in the financial sector of the organization, in satisfying the requirements of the customer, in successfully implementing the internal operations of the organization as well as in managing the human resources of the organization. In order to achieve success in these perspectives, there is an essential need for choosing an efficient program that promotes an improvement in the business process. The process of making such a choice is the area where AHP comes into action. Since the context of the business process is liable to change according to the needs of the organization, it is important to choose a method that is reliable in the longer run of the organization. (David, Kendrick & Saaty, 2007) This is where years of experiments done by Tom Saaty come for help in the form of AHP. According to his perspectives, AHP is advantageous in the following ways: AHP is designed in such a way that it allows the management to make high valued strategic decisions and its hierarchical design allows them to develop measuring techniques that determine the differences observed in the strategic alignment. Priorities are assigned not by taking the financial considerations alone, but also including the perspectives of the other stakeholders.

Visual Arts Experimental Drawing Research Paper - 1

Visual Arts Experimental Drawing - Research Paper Example Poor for most of his life, he worked as a wholesale fabric salesman, door to door salesman, in a plant nursery and for a short while at a defense plant before launching into a full time artistic career (Waldman 21). Cornell found his inspiration in remnants of beautiful and precious objects that he came upon during his frequent trips to thrift stores and book shops. He could create magic from mundane objects and his work has elements of constructivism and installation art that influence the onlooker to touch and interact with the creation (Solomon 36). Famous among his works was his penny arcade portrait of Lauren Bacall, his Hotel Series and his Pink Palace Series. He kept a dossier of over 150 visual themes that interested and inspired him. His film montage Rose Hobart from the film East of Borneo is considered one of the earliest fanvids and has been preserved for cultural significance (Frye 1). Works Cited Frye, Brian. Rose Hobart. 2000. Print. Solomon, Deborah. Utopia Parkway: T he Life and Times of Joseph Cornell. Farrar, Strauss and Giroux, 1997. Print. Waldman, Diane. Master of Dreams. 2002. Print. Margaret Olley (250 words) Margaret Olley (1923-2011) was an Australian painter known for her still life paintings. She had more than 90 solo exhibitions in her career. Olley was born in Lismore, New South Wales and did her training in art at Somerville High School and East Sydney Technical College, where she graduated in 1945. She spent some time at Hill end area of New South Wales. Her first exhibition was held at the Macquarie Gallery in 1948. Olley also travelled to France, London, Spain and Lisbon in 1949. She stayed in France till her father’s death in 1953, whereupon she returned to Brisbane. She traveled through North Queensland in the 1950s and followed this up with a trip to Papua New Guinea (France 12). Olley painted what she saw around her. She was critical of all sorts of pretense and deliberate characterization – like following fash ion, gender stereotyping of women and Australia’s isolation in the world. She adopted truthfulness in all that she saw and did. The quality of her work greatly improved after she gave up consuming alcohol in 1959. The colors in her work were deeper and her drawings more confident and three dimensional in structure, form and weight (Stewart 22). She was honored with the Order of Australia in 1991 and also won the Mosman Art Prize in 1947. Amazingly, two of her portraits – one by William Dobell in 1948 and another by Ben Quilty in 2011 – both won an Archibald Prize. One can easily see the deep vibrant colors in Poppies and Checked Cloth while Turkish Pots and Lemons hold a touch of intrigue behind the hazy look. Marigolds and Fruit once again reminds us of days gone by like the Victorian era (Pearce 19). Poppies and Checked Cloth Turkish Pots and Lemons Marigolds and Fruit Works Cited France, Christine. Margaret Olley. Craftsman House, Sydney, 2002. Print. Pearce, Barry. Margaret Olley. The Art Gallery of NSW, 1996. Print. Stewart, Margaret. Margaret Olley – Far From a Still Life, 2005. Print. Grace Cossington Smith Grace Cossington Smith (1892-1984) has been hailed as the first of Australia’s Post Impressionist painters. She was born in Neutral Bay Sydney but lived most of her life at her mother’s home in Turramurra. She studied art under the tutelage of Albert Collins and Alfred

Business Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words - 2

Business Marketing - Essay Example Moreover, if a customer is not happy with the complimentary services provided by Apple, he may get hold of Apple Protection Plan which is to be purchased. Apple claims that the protection plan gives one stop service and support from Apple experts. Solutions to your queries are just a call away. The plan gives both the hardware and software support (Apple-Support-AppleCare, 2011). Here is what Apple says about its service plan: Apart from one stop technical service, hardware and software support is also included. The hardware support includes coverage of iPhone, battery, earphones and accessories. Regarding battery coverage, service is available for battery depletion of 50% or more from original specification (Apple-Support-AppleCare, 2011). There is an app store of Apple which has hundreds of thousands of software on its store. It is the world’s largest mobile applications store. Some of them are free, and some are to be purchased. There are amazing applications related to games, lifestyle, social networking, and education. You can browse your choice of application and start playing with it right away after downloading it. App store also let you update your current applications in your iPhone by just a single tap (Apple-iPhone-Learn about apps available on the App Store, 2011). Buys (2009) writes in his article about Apple customer satisfaction. As per him, AppleCare provides excellent support service. It repairs phone, answer your queries and replace the damaged parts. If you want to inquire about importing a movie into iMovie, AppleCare will be of great help in this regard. With a single phone and lots of applications in it, you can do simultaneous works at a time; write a book, take photos, make movies. This is why Apple has been a great success (Buys, 2009). However, John (2009) comments on the above article that Apple has a terrible service. His experience for replacing broken products was bad; he said it took him months to have it

Highschool Dropouts Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Highschool Dropouts - Research Paper Example Timely solutions are necessary especially since there has not been a substantial improvement in the figures even after the education reforms of the past few decades. Consequently, this essay explores the extend of high school dropout rate while suggesting the possible reasons why many students do not stay in school until graduation in addition to providing possible solutions to end the cycle. Statistics notes the current annual high school dropout figure to be 3,030,000(Education Week, 2013). The high number of high school dropouts in US educational system has not gone unnoticed given the number of national policies that have been put in place over the years to reverse the cycle. The year 1990 recorded a change in the way the state and federal government handled the issue of high school dropouts through adoption of six national goals that were to be achieved by the year 2000. The second goal in the six national goals underlies the government’s commitment towards improving the high school graduation rate up to 90 percent in addition to an undertaking which would see the prevailing gap in high school graduation rates among minority and non-minority students eliminated. The six national goals for the reduction of high school dropout rate has had a significant impact as seen from the decreasing levels of drop outs from 1990s figures of 9 percent for whites, 13.2 percent for African American and 32.4 percent for Hispanic to the 2009 dropout figures of 5.2 percent for whites and 9.6 percent for African American and 17.6 percent for the Hispanic. During the same period, high school dropout rates across gender and race reduced from 12.1 percent to 8.1 (Education Week, 2013) The number of high school dropouts has a significant impact on the social, cultural, political and economic ambitions of a country. The future of any country literary depends on the education of the children since they are future citizens, professionals, and leaders therefore making education the major tool for empowerment of a country’s citizenry in addition to the guaranteed development of personal, economic, and social well-being of the people in a society. Therefore, high drop outs reduce the number of qualified human resource from varied social backgrounds that are necessary for making essential public policies both in political and professional positions. As a consequence, in undertaking the educational journey students should be encouraged to remain in schools up to the graduation time for them to increase their knowledge skills and attitude that will make them adapt to their social responsibility, healthy, and be contributing citizens (Greenberg et al., 2003). Economically, high school dropouts earn lower pays on average compared to those who graduated where male dropouts of ages 25 to 65 had an annual average earning of about $26,400 compared to the average of $35,000 that male high school graduates earn annually which is still lower compared to $40,000 that a male college graduate in the same age bracket earned (Lofstrom, 2008). The current vicious cycle of high school dropout can be explored under different levels considering the fact the statistics are not even across different sex where the percentage of male at 9.1% is more than that of female at 7%, race

Summary of patents and standards Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Summary of patents and standards - Essay Example This invention comprised readable data for a computer, which represents an encoded pixel collection. The collection comprises several pixels organized to form a source graphic symbol of the part geometrically similar to an exclusive attribute of the intended graphic symbol. In addition, it is possible to pixel the target graphic symbol using one or more coded pixel cluster. This is the major assertion that the owner of this patent claim, which is similar to other claims. The main objective of this innovation is to encode graphic symbols founded on both the keyboard printable characters for instance letters and numbers and on other printable graphic symbols. Consequently, this will render the decoding more precise even when the printed symbols are only partly clear. The above assertion explains the first and second feature of the invention. The third feature of the invention, involves a technique for processing a printed document containing the intentioned computer legible graphic sym bols. This method can help in identifying the intentioned graphic symbols. This method serves various functions. First, it has a pixel collection fashioned by vision photographing, which are adequately identifiable even at high resolution.

Chocolate History Essay Example for Free

Chocolate History Essay All chocolate starts with a seed called a cocoa bean that is grown on a small tree. Many countries in Central and South America produce cocoa beans. The history of chocolate starts in Latin America, where the cocoa bean was first discovered about 2,000 years ago on a tropical tree. The first people recognized to have used these beans to make any kind of chocolate were the Maya’s. They called it the kakawa bean, which is where the origin of the world chocolate began. They most often used the bean to make a spicy, foamy drink. Later, the Aztecs discovered the cocoa bean. Eventually this was introduced in Europe after the Spaniards came to Central America. When the Spaniards began experimenting with the bean, they began to add other spices to it, such as cinnamon and sugar, to give the chocolate a sweeter taste. Soon, the rest of Europe started drinking it and it became a popular drink that only the rich could afford. In the 1600’s the first chocolate house was opened and this flavor was able to reach the mouths of many other people. In the early 1800’s, solid chocolate was created. It became more affordable to everyone and throughout time more recipes were experimented with, creating many different types of chocolate. There are many different types of chocolate such as White, Dark (bittersweet), Milk, Semi-Sweet and even Baking Chocolate (unsweetened). White chocolate isnt really considered chocolate because it has no cocoa solids in it, it is made of the fat from the cocoa beans known as cocoa butter. White chocolate has a creamy consistency and taste. It lacks flavor because it contains no chocolate liquor which gives chocolate the bitter strong chocolate flavor. White chocolate is not normally used in cooking unless it is a replacement for dark or milk chocolate. It is used mainly for decorating. Dark chocolate is the healthiest type of chocolate. This chocolate contains a large amount of disease-fighting flavonoids, anti-oxidants also found in red wine and lots of different fruit and vegetables. Its anti-oxidants can significantly improve blood pressure, prevent blood clots, slow the oxidation of low-density lipoproteins (LDL) cholesterol making it less likely to stick to artery walls and also reduce inflammation. Eating dark chocolate can also lower insulin resistance, the main problem behind diabetes. Milk chocolate does not contain as much chocolate liquor as dark chocolate, which gives it a softer chocolate flavor. This chocolate is much sweeter than any other. It is the most popular type of chocolate. Milk chocolate is more difficult to temper properly and more prone to overheating which would make it thick and lumpy if it comes into contact with water. Milk chocolate can be used in pretty much anything you want to be sweet. The difference between regular chocolate and baking chocolate is baking chocolate has less sugar and no fat and its bitter while regular chocolate is sweet and sugary. Tempering means improving the consistency, durability or hardness of a substance by heating and cooling it. Tempering is done by melting solid chocolate to a temperature high enough that the crystals in the cocoa butter break down. Once the chocolate is fully melted, it must be cooled to about 82F, a temperature at which crystals will start to form again so that the chocolate can eventually re-solidify. The chocolate’s temperature is then raised back to about 90F, where it is very smooth and can be poured into chocolate molds and used for other things. White, milk and dark chocolate can be tempered. Tempered chocolate is very glossy, has a firm finish and melts smoothly at around body temperature. Chocolate that has not been tempered or that has been improperly tempered will look flat or discolored. Tempering can be done in 2 ways by hand, or through a process called seeding. Tempering by hand can be done by tabliering where melted chocolate is poured onto a cool marble surface and worked with spatulas until it has cooled down sufficiently. More melted chocolate is added back and incorporated in to the tabliered chocolate to bring it back to the final working temperature. Through the process of seeding, chocolate is melted and a small amount of finely chopped solid chocolate is added into the melted chocolate and stirred in. Adding solid chocolate will lower the temperature of the melted chocolate and it will start to temper the melted chocolate. When it comes to baking, chocolate does not need to be tempered because it is being incorporated into another form. Tempering chocolate is good for dipping foods, for a more clean finish.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Psychosis

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Psychosis A literature review in chronological order from past 5 years Introduction The blanket term Psychotherapy covers a multifaceted pluralistic enterprise in which a range of therapies is required to meet a patient’s various needs (Holmes J 2002). The National Service Framework cites cognitive behaviour therapy as being the psychotherapeutic method of choice for conditions that include â€Å"depression, eating disorders, panic disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and deliberate self harm.† (Rouse et al. 2001) Literature review The first article we shall consider is a letter to the editor of the BMJ by Van Meer (R 2003). It is comparatively unusual since it is a clinician referring to clinical matters which are both intuitive and experience based. The author refers to the fact that many psychiatrists and related healthcare professionals actually avoid talking about the content of psychotic symptoms. The generally accepted rationale being that these are diagnostically of no significance and therefore therapeutically irrelevant. Van Meer contrasts this view with the basic concepts of cognitive behaviour therapy. He suggests that in his experience, the patient actually often will want to talk about issues that are central to their experience and are distressed when they are kept out of the conversation. He suggests that this is one of the reasons why cognitive behaviour therapy is popular with psychotic patients is that they have the opportunity to discuss with sympathetic professionals the significance of the ir experiences and this is capable of giving them a mechanism of dealing with what may be otherwise unexplainable to them. This publication is selected because of its counterintuitive thrust to support cognitive behaviour therapy against the â€Å"mainstream† of current clinical psychiatric practice and is written by an experienced practising clinician. This area of consideration is given a further twist with a different insight from Moorhead (S 2003). He agrees that psychiatric professionals tend to try to avoid engagement with psychotic patients on the subject of their psychosis and â€Å"thereby unwittingly add to the prejudice that blights the lives of people who live with psychosis† . He points, very succinctly, to the fact (and cites Brabban A et al. 2000) that the central tenet of cognitive behaviour therapy is that the therapist should endeavour to show a clear linkage between â€Å"personal experience, core beliefs (schemas), and emergence of psychotic symptoms†. The significance of this publication is that it is unusual insofar as it outlines the benefit of cognitive behaviour therapy for the staff as much as the benefit for the patient, by suggesting that staff trained in the techniques of cognitive behaviour therapy are able to empathise on a much deeper level with the patient and this, in itself, has a â €Å"remarkable remoralising effect of developing a meaningful understanding of the psychotic phenomenon with a patient†. This point is echoed in the discussion of the Craig paper. The Craig paper (Craig T K J et al. 2004) is a carefully constructed, but badly reported, randomised controlled trail of the current efficacy of specialised care modalities for cases of early psychosis. (Vickers, A. J et al. 2001). It is presented here as a case study in critical analysis. The interventions were delivered in two groups. The entry cohort was allocated to a standard care group (the control) or the intervention group (specialised care group). Both sets of treatment were delivered by the community mental health teams. The outcomes for both groups were rates of relapse or readmission to hospital. (Friedman GD. 1994) We present this paper to illustrate a common problem with this type of trial. On first appreciation, it demonstrates the fact that the intervention group did better than the control group. The difficulty in critical analysis comes in trying to decide which of the treatment modalities actually produced this beneficial effect. (Mohammed, D et al. 2003) The entry cohort was quite impressive for a study of this type with 319 presenting with psychotic illness over an 18 month period and 144 of these meeting the inclusion criteria. 94% of these were remained in the trial over the 18 months of follow up. We note that, although the programme of interventions did include cognitive behaviour therapy, it also included other treatment options such as low dose atypical antipsychotic regimens, cognitive behaviour therapy based on manualised protocols, and family counselling and vocational strategies based on established protocols (Jackson H et al. 1998). From the point of view of our considerations here, on the one hand the results appeared to be good insofar as the study showed that the intervention group had fewer readmissions to hospital in the study period and also they had fewer psychotic relapses (although this was of low statistical significance). On the other hand the paper tells us that all patients had medication and the ultimate choice of treatment pathway was decided by the intervention clinician, so although cognitive behaviour therapy was used, we have no absolute idea of its effectiveness from this trial. (Green J et al. 1998). All we can say with confidence is that, as part of a total package, cognitive behaviour therapy appeared to have helped to contribute to a beneficial outcome for a significant number of psychotic patients. A completely analytical and minimalist approach to this particular trial could suggest that it is indeed possible that cognitive behaviour therapy is actually ineffective per se. other than it served to keep the patient in closer contact with the clinicians. (Piantadosi S. 1997) In this respect this is an instance of a trial which is seemingly supportive but does not contribute greatly to the evidence base On first sight this particular view might be considered pedantic, but it is echoed by Yates (DH 2005) in a letter in the BMJ, where he specifically takes up this very point. He points to the fact that there is very little description of the regimes of cognitive behaviour therapy and the degree that it’s impact can be isolated from the overall effect. He also refers to the fact that a breakdown of the various therapies offered and the degree that each was helpful would have improved the paper tremendously. We have to agree. We will next consider a high profile paper by Morrison (A P et al. 2004) which has been widely cited. This paper took the pioneering work of Yung (et al. 1996) who identified a high risk group of patients who would develop psychosis and studied the effect of cognitive behaviour therapy on the prevention of the development of the clinical state. Morrison et al. identified the fact that other studies (McGorry, P. D et al. 2002) had demonstrated that it was possible to reduce the incidence of psychosis development with a multifaceted approach, like that of Craig, which included elements of cognitive behaviour therapy. Morrison however, elected to carry out a study that used cognitive behaviour therapy as a single strand approach in this high risk population. (Leaverton P E. 1995) The results from this study convincingly demonstrated that cognitive behaviour therapy alone â€Å"significantly reduced the likelihood of making progression to psychosis as defined on the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale over 12 months.† (Kay, S. R et al. 1987) The authors were also able to demonstrate that cognitive behaviour therapy also reduced the likelihood of a patient being prescribes antipsychotic medication. Other criteria of analysis demonstrated that cognitive behaviour therapy â€Å"significantly improved the positive symptoms of psychosis â€Å" in the target population. This is an important study as it is one of the first to provide a reasonably secure evidence base that cognitive behaviour therapy works in the psychotic patient. It also shows that it works in the high risk group and has the possibility of a prophylactic effect by minimising the likelihood of psychotic relapse. A critical analysis would observe that the intervention cohort was comparatively small and a disproportionately small number were entered in the control group (37 and 23 respectively). High risk psychotic patients are comparatively rare and therefore one has to appreciate the practical difficulties involved in accumulating a sufficiently large sample to study. (Grimes D A et al. 2002), The last publication that we shall consider is that by Trower (P et al. 2004). It was published at the same time as the Morrison paper and is notable for the fact that, like the Morrison paper it recognises the shortfalls of the previous multi-modality studies and isolates cognitive behaviour therapy in its analysis. It also specifically targets a notoriously treatment-resistant group of psychotics, those who suffer from command hallucinations. (Haddock, G et al. 1999) This was a single blind randomised trial with 38 patients. The trial was complex in structure but, in essence, it was able to show, with convincing statistical significance that cognitive behaviour therapy interventions alone was able to reduce the patient’s compliance rate with the psychotic commands. The authors noted that this reduction in compliance was associated with a reduction in levels of both anxiety and depression. In conclusion we would like to commend the book by Eisenman (R 2004) â€Å"The Case Study Guide to Cognitive Behaviour Therapy of Psychosis† as a particularly authoritative and clinically useful overview. It cites a number of clinical case studies and analyses them in depth. It supports the view that cognitive behaviour therapy, by attempting to confront the patient’s distorted thinking and allowing them to appreciate their thoughts in a more rational and realistic way, can have beneficial results and it places cognitive behaviour therapy in a clinical context amongst the other, generally accepted modes of psychotherapy. It is not a peer reviewed publication so we shall not consider it further than that. References Brabban A, Turkington D. 2000  The search for meaning: detecting congruence between life-events, underlying schema and psychotic symptoms. Formulation-driven and schema focussed CBT for a neuroleptic-resistant schizophrenic patient with a delusional memory. In: Morrison T, ed.  A casebook of cognitive therapy for psychosis.  Brighton : Psychology Press, 2000. Craig T K L, Philippa Garety, Paddy Power, Nikola Rahaman, Susannah Colbert, Miriam Fornells-Ambrojo, and Graham Dunn 2004 The Lambeth Early Onset (LEO) Team : randomised controlled trial of the effectiveness of specialised care for early psychosis BMJ, Nov 2004 ; 329 : 1067 ; Eisenman R 2004 The Case Study Guide to Cognitive Behaviour Therapy of Psychosis Am J Psychiatry, Jul 2004 ; 161 : 1318. Friedman G D. 1994  Primer of Epidemiology. 4th ed.  New York : Mc-Graw-Hill, 1994. Green J, Britten N. 1998  Qualitative research and evidence based medicine.  BMJ 1998 ; 316 : 1230-1233 Grimes D A, Schulz K F.2002  Cohort studies: marching towards outcomes.  Lancet 2002 ; 359 : 341-5 Haddock, G., McCarron, J., Tarrier, N., et al (1999)  Scales to measure dimensions of hallucinations and delusions: the psychotic symptom rating scales (PSYRATS).  Psychological Medicine, 39, 879 –889. Holmes J 2002  All you need is cognitive behaviour therapy?  BMJ, Feb 2002 ; 324 : 288 294 ; Jackson H, McGorry P, Edwards J, Hulbert C, Henry L, Francey S, et al. 1998 Cognitively orientated psychotherapy for early psychosis (COPE).  Br J Psychiatry 1998 ; 172 (Suppl 33) : 93-100.  Kay, S. R. Opler, L. A. (1987) The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) for schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Bulletin, 13, 507 -518. Leaverton PE. 1995  A Review of Biostatistics. 5th ed.  Boston: Little, Brown, 1995 McGorry, P. D., Yung, A. R., Phillips, L. J., et al (2002)  Randomized controlled trial of interventions designed to reduce the risk of progression to first-episode psychosis first-episode in a clinical sample with subthreshold symptoms.  Archives of General Psychiatry, 59, 921 -928. Mohammed, D Braunholtz, and T P Hofer 2003 The measurement of active errors: methodological issues Qual. Saf. Health Care, Dec 2003 ; 12: 8 12. Moorhead S 2003  Cognitive behaviour therapy can help end alienation of psychosis  BMJ 2003 ; 326 : 549 Morrison A P , Paul French, Lara Walford, Shà ´n W. Lewis, Aoiffe Kilcommons, Joanne Green, Sophie Parker, and Richard P. Bentall 2004 Cognitive therapy for the prevention of psychosis in people at ultra-high risk: Randomised controlled trial Br. J. Psychiatry, Oct 2004 ; 185 : 291 297. Piantadosi S. 1997  Clinical Trials: A Methodologic Perspective.  New York: John Wiley, 1997.   Rouse, Jolley, and Read 2001 National service frameworks BMJ, Dec 2001 ; 323 : 1429. Rower P, MAX BIRCHWOOD, ALAN MEADEN, SARAH BYRNE, ANGELA NELSON, and KERRY ROSS 2004 Cognitive therapy for command hallucinations: randomised controlled trial Br. J. Psychiatry, Apr 2004; 184: 312 320. van Meer R 2003  To listen or not to listen  BMJ 2003 ; 326 : 549 Vickers, A. J. Altman, D. G. (2001)  Analysing controlled trials with baseline and follow up measurements.  BMJ, 323, 1123–1124 Yates D H 2005 Specialised care for early psychosis: More detail is needed BMJ, Jan 2005 ; 330 : 197 Yung, A., McGorry, P. D., McFarlane, C. A., et al (1996)  Monitoring and care of young people at incipient risk of psychosis. Schizophrenia Bulletin, 22, 283 -303. 5.5.06 PDG Word count 2,313

Metaphysical Poetry :: essays papers

Metaphysical Poetry Discuss the uses of metaphors of colonization in metaphysical poetry and/or Milton. "Movement across or through space becomes a process of colonization of that space." During the period of Milton's Paradise Lost as well as myriad of poets construction of an epoque submerged in metaphysical literature, a number of significant events both socio-political, entwined with a systematic religious metamorphism of the sixteenth and seventeenth century led to a time of unrest and discovery. The creators and author's of work of this periods placed their emphasis not specifically on a level of morality or self understanding but rather a rediscovery of the body and soul, almost a form of existensionalism or physical cosmos with a geography. 'All things are subject to the Mind... It measures in one thought the whole circumference of heaven and by the same line it takes the geography of the earth. The seas, the air, the fire all things of either, are within the comprehension of the mind. It has an influence on them all, whence it lakes all that may be useful, all that may be helpful in government. No limitation is prescribed to it, no restriction is upon it, but in a free scope it has a liberty upon all. And in this liberty is the excellence of the mind; in this power and composition of the mind is perfection of a man... Man is an absolute master of himself; his own safety, and tranquillity by God... are made dependent on himself.'1 In this short example of Puritanism text as it stands, alone contains a number of various references to the process of colonization, of expanding, perceiving all geographically and manipulating, making man or perhaps more specifically the colonisers omniscient and God-like. The crusader self-reliant and independent with the knowledge that God is his guardian of safety and tranquillity. In this particular the growing number of Puritans played a significant role both in the cultivation and transformation of the Christian religion and foreign territories. The Puritans themselves comprised of those in the Church of England unhappy with limitations of the Elizabethan Settlement; some were Presbyterians, and all were to some extent or other Calvinists (though not all Calvinists were Puritans). They were a people of scrupulous moral rigour and favoured plain styles of dress, detesting any form of luxury or decadence. The name Puritan later became a catch-all label for the disparate groups who led much of the New World colonization and won the English Civil Wars. New World colonization began as early as 1480 by English seamen performing spectacular feats of exploration

The Donner Party :: essays research papers

DAVID McCULLOUGH, Host: Good evening and welcome to The American Experience. I'm David McCullough. At the start of spring in the year 1846 an appealing advertisement appeared in the Springfield, Illinois, Gazette. ''Westward ho,'' it declared. ''Who wants to go to California without costing them anything? As many as eight young men of good character who can drive an ox team will be accommodated. Come, boys, you can have as much land as you want without costing you anything.'' The notice was signed G. Donner, George Donner, leader of what was to become the most famous of all the hundreds of wagon trains to start for the far west, the tragic, now nearly mythic Donner Party. For years Western scholars and novelists have been drawn to the story, yet until now there has been no documentary. Ric Burns's film is a first. Westward ho, indeed. If ever there was a moment when America seemed in the grip of some great, out-of-the-ordinary pull, it was in 1846. The whole mood was for movement, expansion, and the whole direction was westward. It was in 1846 that the Mormons set out on their trek to the Great Salt Lake. It was in 1846 that the Mexican war began and effectively all of Texas, Mexico and California were added to the United States. And it wasn't just young men who answered the call. Whole families and people of all stations in life joined the caravan, which is part of the fascination of our haunting story. One is struck, for example, by how many women there were in the Donner party and how many of them survived the horrific ordeal they met. Imagine packing up an entire household, saying good-bye to all you've known and setting off to walk essentially to walk to California, a continent away, little knowing what was in store. ALEXIS DE TOCQUEVILLE: ''It is odd to watch with what feverish ardor Americans pursue prosperity. Ever tormented by the shadowy suspicion that they may not have chosen the shortest route to get it. They cleave to the things of this world as if assured that they will never die, and yet rush to snatch any that comes within their reach as if they expected to stop living before they had relished them. Death steps in, in the end, and stops them before they have grown tired of this futile pursuit of that complete felicity which always escapes them.

Ku Klux Klan Essay -- essays research papers fc

The Ku Klux Klan   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In the southern states of the USA, the period known as â€Å"Reconstruction† created a pressure and fear and hate for the African Americans among many of the southern white people. This was because the African Americans were now free people and had the same rights as the white people. This angered many white people and they created groups to support their beliefs and to allow people with the same ideas to gather together and share their ideas. This is how the Ku Klux Klan came into existence.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Ku Klux Klan began in Pulaski, Tennessee on December 24, 1865. Six men devised the earliest version of the Klan. These men were all ex-confederate soldiers. They were trying to think of an idea to cheer them up because they were upset at the outcome of the Civil War. One of the men suggested that they should start a club and the others thought that would be a good idea. They named their club the Ku Klux Klan after the Greek word kuklos, which meant circle. They chose the circle because it symbolizes unity and perfection. Then they created names for the ranks of the men. The leader was called the Grand Cyclops. These men were so pleased at what they had created that they wanted to show everyone. So they wrapped themselves and their horses up in white sheets and rode through their town. They terrified everyone especially the African Americans.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Even though the club was only meant for fun it became out of control in the years to follow. After the members saw the effects it had on people they decided to use it to their advantage. They first started as a local racial terrorist group that would play evil pranks on black families by burning their houses and churches. But they soon realized what an impact they had on their enemies. They soon started directing their violent actions toward Jews, Orientals and all other non-white races. They even were violent to Catholics and other religions that were not Christians.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  By 1879 the membership of the Klan was around eighty-five thousand members. Many of the visitors that came to the town of Pulaski were inspired by the KKK and when they went back home they decided to set up their own dens and branches of the KKK. There were more than a dozen of these groups all of, which were located in the south.... ... society as well as the USA. They also intend on stopping abortion, outlaw homosexuality, and inter-racial marriages. They believe that everyone should be proud of their race, which means White people have that right to. They feel that all anti-white policies should be disregarded and people be hired, promoted, and given scholarships according to their ability and for no other reasons.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Although the Ku Klux Klan has gone through many changes since it’s beginning, the present Klan is not that different from the original Klan. Even though the Klan has some new objectives it still believes that the White race is superior to all others. They feel that the only way races can develop their full potential and culture is through racial separation. They believe that every race has the natural right to have pride in its heritage and work to better itself. But why is it that the White race is told that it cannot have White Pride. Works Cited Imperial Klans of America. http://www.kkkk.net/index.html. 13 April 1998 Knights of the Ku Klux Klan. http:/www.kkk.com/intro.htm#stands. 11 April 1998 Ku Klux Klan. http:/www.britanica.com. 1999-2000 Britanica.com Inc.

Do curfews keep teens out of trouble Essay

Should people take more responsibility for solving problems that affect their communities or the nation in general? I feel like people should take responsibility for solving problems in their community because you could make a difference in your community and help someone in your little community. Like if you do it nationwide, you probably could help someone but not everyone. In a community you could help just about anyone. Like creating little businesses to give jobs and little community get together. I honestly think its way better to help a community; because if you don’t have a community how will you have a nation? You need a community to even form in to a nation. Like what if no one took responsibility in the communities and went straight to the nation? Like that wouldn’t be good. I mean it’s not bad but it’s leaving the little communities out. Like who would be there if someone’s house gets robbed? Who will put a stop to it? Who will take char ge and find the criminal? The nation has more problems than worrying about a little community break in. that’s how I see it. Like who would be there to even pick up the trash in front of your house on the normal day? The nation would even know about that problem. I think the government needs to have at least 1 person checking up on EVERY community just to make sure if they are alright. Secondly, creating a little business to create new jobs for the community would be such a great idea. Those people could be helping out so many families in that could be in need of money. The government should donate money to some communities that really needs it. The government takes a lot of peoples taxes so why not donate some to money to needy communities? I feel as if the government doesn’t help people at all only like the big problems. I feel like people should take responsibility for solving problems in their community because you could make a difference in your community and help someone in your little community. Like if you do it nationwide, you probably could help someone but not everyone. In a community you could help just about anyone. Like creating little businesses to give jobs and little commu nity get together. So people should take responsibility in their communities. Prev Page

Claudius, hateful villain or good king? Essay

â€Å"Claudius makes a good king. He is a careful ruler and a loving husband, providing stability for both his country and wife. † â€Å"Murderer of the rightful king, Claudius is the play’s hateful, lying villain. † What justification is there in the text to support these two views? What is your opinion of the way Shakespeare presents Claudius? Claudius is capable of becoming an effective king. However his choice to exploit his newly found power for personal gain contradicts the good he attempts to accomplish. An effective king has to be an honest king. Unfortunately Claudius seems unable to be honest to any person through the course of the play. His act of murder and his claim to the throne reflects a self promoting character for the audience. Claudius however is able to be honest with God. Through his act of repent Claudius shows to the audience that he is able to be truthful and it also shows that he is able to distinguish right from wrong. Claudius details, in Act Three Scene Three, that his â€Å"offence is rank† and he wishes it to be pardoned in order for him to progress as an effective king. This honest act shows that Claudius is willing to admit when he is wrong, he may also be afraid of the afterlife and what awaits him. This unknown becomes apart of the larger theme of uncertainty. Claudius is capable of telling the truth, but only when it is to his advantage. In act four scene five, when Laertes blames Claudius for the death of his father, Claudius manipulates the situation by telling Laertes that he will help to exact his revenge. Claudius is therefore able to get rid of both Laertes and Hamlet who both pose a threat to the power that Claudius has gained. Claudius’ ability to resolve the threatening situation and rework it to his advantage, stands him in good stead for the leadership a king exerts on his country when faced with difficult situations. In this scene Claudius outrageously refers to the â€Å"divinity doth hedge a king,† this is ironic considering he was able to so easily murder his own brother, yet this white lie sows a seed in Laertes mind that attempting to kill Claudius would be bad judgement on his part. The continuing conversation allows Laertes to find a person to take the revenge he seeks to deliver. Claudius, already plotting to murder Hamlet, is able to give the task to Laertes, thus relieving Claudius of spilling anymore blood onto his own hands, yet still dealing with the situation he finds threatening to the stability of his crown. His use of manipulation through his use of language mimics the idea of pouring poison into his brother’s ears, by talking people into his way of thinking Claudius is metaphorically pouring poison into people’s ears. In this scene we can see the talent that Claudius harbours that would make him a good stable king; conversely we also see that he puts these talents to bad use causing him to be the play’s hateful, lying villain. Hamlet believes that Claudius is the murderer of the rightful king. In Hamlet’s first soliloquy, Hamlet refers to his father â€Å"so excellent a king, that was to this. † His belief that Claudius is not the rightful king that should provide benefit for the state, before his father’s ghost informs him of his murderous attributes, allows the audience to see that in the eyes of those that loved the late King Hamlet, Claudius is no comparison to the leadership that was shown by his predecessor. The late King Hamlet was a man who charged into battle â€Å"armed at point, exactly cap-a-pie† as described by Horatio in act one scene two. However it can be argued that this works in Claudius’ favour. The previous king used violence to bring order; through battle he would have put other people’s lives at risk for his reputation and ego. Claudius uses communication between countries to resolve any problems that exist. We see this in (I can’t find it but I am quite sure it happens somewhere, hopefully I would have found it by the time we meet. In the section I’m looking for some people is discussing the coming battle or something like that, but it makes out that Claudius is talking to the other country. ) Hamlet’s view can be a result of anger for his mother’s remarriage, or the death and replacement of his father. If his view stems from this then the audience is asked to decide whether they believe Claudius is doing a better job at protecting his country, and providing stability for it. Claudius provides stability for his country and wife only for the short term. His record of underhandedness leaves him vulnerable to attack if anyone were to find out. Through this attack Claudius would be left vulnerable for the public and other countries to remove his crown. From Claudius’ bad decision to remove his brother from power he has created a corrupt character that is leading the state. Through one action Claudius is forced to cover his tracks, by covering his tracks of one foul deed he must commit another. He attempts to right what is wrong and in doing so he allows the stakes to be raised significantly. If he does not hide his mistakes then he will surely be found out, by attempting to hide them, he runs the risk of being found out but can ultimately get away with it. We see that Claudius is upset with his actions when he pleads for religion to cure him of his life at the alter, he asks for forgiveness. Claudius is not the legitimate king, and therefore automatically takes the place of the play’s hateful, lying villain. The addition of his murderous attributes makes it hard for any audience member to connect with the thought behind Claudius’ actions. He’s seen as a cold murderer that only acts for himself. Contrary to popular belief I believe that Claudius is a man who tempted one day made, a very bad decision. Through his human instinct for survival he has become a corrupt king that originally wanted well for his country. We see his remorse when he kneels at the alter for forgiveness. He provides stability for the short term but not ultimately. Claudius has the ability to become a great king, but has tainted his chances with the murder of his brother, causing him to become the corrupt villain that audiences see him as.

I Really Enjoy Family Time.

Griselda Soto English 99 Dennis Pearson 04/16/13 I really enjoy family time. Family is not an important thing, it’s everything. There are people who put work first, or anything else before their family. I personally think there is nothing more important than family. Because, what is the purpose to live just to work? In the end of our lives, we are not going to be able to take anything with us. There is nothing else I enjoy more than spending quality time with my daughters.I believe that by spending quality time with them, I can take advantage of the situation and teach them good values. Even I learn a lot from them because they always teach me the importance of appreciating little things in life. One of the things I love the most from them is that they always remind me that I have to live life to the moment. Unlike most adults, children find joy in almost everything as riding a bike, reading a book, or even by drawing a picture. That is one of the main reason I enjoy so much s pending time with my daughters. They always give me joy.When I see My daughters smile it's when I know they are having fun, for me that worth more than all the money in the world. My daughters always amuse me and fill me with joy. They taught me that no matter what you do, as long as you use your imagination everything could be fun. So I always do my best to put in first place what really matters in my life because life goes in the blink of an eye. That's why I put first what is truly meaningful in my life. I have learned a lot from my daughters, for example: To always take advantage of any situation.

My Favorite Childhood Memory

As time goes by, there was this event which happened during my childhood keeps grinding in my brain. The one thing which I favor the most was to watch cartoon all day long. My childhood was so much influenced by Disney cartoons. The little girl would always have the thoughts of breaking the TV glass and get into it to join them. Me as the youngest in the family would let myself to play in a place of my own creation with the characters present in the cartoon. My parents were aware of my craze towards the fantasy land and the characters. In a splendid summer, my parents took my other siblings and me to somewhere really far from our home. My siblings and I rushed to the windows of the car to get the best position to view the beauty of newly existed city in our life. It was magnificently beautiful to look at the tall buildings out of the car windows. The pain in the neck was greatly ignored over the breathtaking city as we were had to look up in the air. After the hours of journey, my daddy stopped off the car at our favorite restaurant which has a star on it. Carls Jr. was the place we always yearn for. We had queued at the washroom door to take turn—empting the over filled bladder. Now, all the eyes are helping the brain to glance through the menu board to decide the meal for the hungry stomach. Jr. Meal set was the most appetizing menu for little kids. As usual my lovely elder sister had educated me over my ill table manners since I munched while my mouth opened wide and dinned. Belching sounds were heard among the family members who marked the filled stomach. Before, we jump into the car, mom instructed her kids to drain out the urine as it takes another couple of hours before we hit the destination. Silence was observed in the car except the fine classical music played to help us rest the strained eyes. Snoring and drooling had been part of the journey to a veiled land. The sun shone straight to face forcing us to open the long closed eyes. Eyes were trying to keep focus on a figure standing against the sun. It was mommy, waiting for her kids to awake from their sleeps. On by one, leaped out of the car while blocked by mom and dad from viewing the surrounding. Daddy urged us to close our eyes. Next, we heard mommy saying â€Å"darlings, you may disclose your eyes†. While sun shines happily to us, we hardly could see the place hid over the sun shine. Yet, we identified a great gateway and a castle which always appears at the beginning of any Disney cartoon or movies. It was Disney Land. My siblings and I were jumped freely in the summer warm sky as we were surged with happiness and so much joy. The heart could hardly believe the eyes.

Impact of english in the arab world Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Impact of english in the arab world - Essay Example Basically, there exists a unanimous understanding among individuals that the use of English in communication helps in enhancing social status in different countries. As a result, the governments have made efforts in improving English in the countries through different means such as adopting strict state control of the educational systems (Ramaswami, Sarraf & Haydon 71). Concerning education in the Arab countries, English has been made a primary language in the education systems. The reason for making the English language is because of the feeling that English enhances career prospects the individuals speaking other languages may not have their scholarly works published throughout the world. Besides, English might attract the interest of other highly esteemed western countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom (Ramaswami, Sarraf & Haydon 86). Through English language, the Arab world has been able to share the educational resources with the rest of the world. This in turn has enabled the Arabic speakers into enjoying the utilization of researched materials of different versions and enhancing the ease in their education. The education in the Arab world has also been able to formalize through the English language to a significant degree for instance, allowing individuals for utilization of the internet and other digital media mainly prog rammed in English. Individuals of different ages have shown interest in studying the English language due to the rising needs worldwide. Moreover, several institutions have been established to offer education on the English language such as the AMIDEAST. English language has attributed to improved exposure of the traditional media that principally use English language as the medium. For instance, there is higher exposure of television in urban regions hence; the people are exposed to more English in such

Low cost carriers Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Low cost carriers - Essay Example In this paper, an article published in the air transport management journal discussing the airport choice factors considered by low cost airlines in Europe will be evaluated while relating the relevance of the practice to tourism and hospitality. The passenger attitude determines the success level and indices of any project introduced into the market and thus the success of such a project in the end. An article published in the same journal on a case study conducted to evaluate the perception of passengers on low cost airlines and full service carriers will be evaluated. Articles on low cost carriers According to Smith and Potter (2005), the success of the low cost carriers, an increasingly significant means of transport in Europe, is influenced by the choice of the airport. This determines the success or failure of the airline with the increasing competition in the airline industry put into consideration. The authors thus conducted a survey of eight European airports to ascertain th e influence they have on the success of the different low cost carriers that uses its runways. The significant growth in the number of low cost carriers in Europe who are known to use regional or secondary airports has increased the competition among different airports that agitate to secure their services. This competition has been exploited by the low cost airlines to demand for reduced service cost thus enabling them to reduce their services tremendously and fit the budget of majority consumers. With the increasing competition for the low cost airlines by regional airport, most of these carriers have been enabled to put a number of factors into consideration when choosing the best airport to use. A number of factors are shown in this paper to influence the choices made these airline carriers when choosing the airport of choice. Ryanair, one of the main low cost airline companies in Europe has a number of considerations that it makes when choosing the airport of choice. These fact ors include the airport charges that each airport levies, the ability of the carriers and the planes to make a quick turnaround, presence of simple terminals and rapid check-in facilities. The availability of good passenger facilities and accessibility influences the attitude of the passengers when the airline company thus considers choosing the best airline and it. According to this evaluation, Smith and Potter (2005) generated from their study the impact that an airport catchment area has on the choices made by the airline companies. Regional or local airports that are located in areas where the demand for low cost carriers is high is considered highly by low cost airlines as this translates to increased passengers available to use the airlines. The services offered by low cost airlines fall under a specific niche and thus making low cost airlines sensitive to airports with the potential demand for their specific niche of services. Slot times for takeoff affects operation of an ai rline especially the low cost airline thus making it an important consideration for LCCs when choosing their airport of choice. Airports with convenient takeoffs, landing and turnaround schedules attract the services of most low cost airlines in Europe as compared to other airports that do not. Such slots must also be readily available during the day for the planes to enable the LCCs maximize fleet utilization. The fees charged by the

Compare and contrast Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Compare and contrast - Assignment Example powerful customer base, great expertise in recommendation software, and opportunities to market through cross-selling† (Furtado, Grosman, & de Souza, n.d., p. 2). Despite its failure to dominate the net, Microsoft still has much strength to sustain competition. Aside from being the most globally recognizable brand, it has a diverse and talented workforce, a good reputation as an employer, and its own online network division (Hafner & Hibert, 2001). Although they have different strengths and products, Amazon and Microsoft share the same market which makes competition inevitable. However, both companies can fare better if they cooperate. First, it would increase the exposure and scope of Amazon products. Secondly, it would provide Microsoft with more assets (e.g. in music retail) and prevent companies like Apple from dominating their respective markets. More importantly, Amazon and Microsoft are more like complimentary companies than competitors. For example, Microsoft could provide the software to Amazon’s Kindle (Perlow, 2010).On the part of the consumers, however, such partnership may not be beneficial. As in traditional trade, online commerce can be monopolized. Monopolies can dictate the online market to their advantage, just as in the case of Google whose â€Å"new formats†¦increase expenses for advertisers† (Edwards, 2010). Scenarios like that would trigger a domino effect that would eventually burden

Strategic Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words - 19

Strategic Management - Essay Example According to him, this is the â€Å"VRIN† resource based view of a company. Cohesive leadership, brand equity, brand value, trademarks, patents and copy rights are certain types of VRIN resources of a firm (Srivastava1, Franklin and Martinette, 2013). These resources of the companies should be coupled with proficient â€Å"capabilities† for generating the best outcomes from the operational activities of a concern. Through acquisition of rare resources and capabilities, companies can generate significant entry barriers within its industry. The differentiation strategies of the firms can be successful only with the help of extraordinary resources and capabilities. Sustained competitive advantages of giant multinational companies can be attained only through acquisition of unique productive factors.VRIN resources and its internal capabilities are strategically valuable for a company for certain special features. These resources helps an organization create value for its customers and this value exceeds the cost of its operations. The value of the consumers depends on prices of a product or a service of a company (Srivastava1, Franklin and Martinette, 2013). Through VRIN resources a company can lower its product or service pri ces more than that of its competitors and hence tap a wider base of customers. By achieving greater competitive advantages, a company can earn more profit than its market rivals. The factors causing commercial prosperity of successful multinational companies as Apple, Amazon and Ikea can be effectively analyzed through VRIN analysis model. The tangible and intangible resources of Apple Inc. are its valuable to its business. The land buildings acquired the company, its capital resources and equipments types of its valuable resources in business. The brand reputation of the concern, its trademarks and patents are also types of insubstantial factors. High social and commercial prosperity can be achieved by Apple Inc. only

Concert report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Concert report - Essay Example These movements are correspondingly arranged in four sonnets. Again, each of the sonnets is further divided into three distinct sections. Each of these sections corresponds to each of the three movements in the concerto. Thus, Vivaldi’s instrumental music tends to sound extra musical. The second piece to be discussed is how Vivaldi provides varied instructions throughout the four concertos. In the second movement of the spring, Vivaldi provides the instruction of The barking dog. In the first movement of The summer, he provides the instruction of Languor caused the heat, and in the second movement of the movement of The autumn, Vivaldi provides instruction of the drunkards have fallen asleep. The texture of each of his concerto also varies. However, each seems to resemble the respective concerto. The third piece to be discussed is Nielsen’s Symphony No.2, Opus 16, The Temperaments. Through this, Nielsen provides and exclusive thrilling musical experience which is described as a depiction of the essential component of human personality. He provided an excellent conducting whether he emphasized on accuracy of dynamics, articulation, balance as well as phrasing. In conclusion, Vivaldi’s Four Seasons Concert was provided an overall thrilling musical experience. The combination of Violinist Nicola’s and Thierry Fischer made the concert incredible. Through the concert, I discovered how varied movements and instructions can make a musical concert very appealing to the

English-Only Debated Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

English-Only Debated - Essay Example It can also be defined as an easily accessible artistic mode of expression that points out, in a wide range of mediums, criticisms and oppositions to social, political ,economic or other circumstances in the community that are of high concern (Duncombe, 4-5). Consequently, cultural resistance mainly intends to raise awareness of the issue and then calls for justice on the part of the oppressed, this implies that it exist for a reason and not just for the sake of sympathy or pity. This article addresses creative cultural resistance in the American society with focus on English language There has been a raging debate on cultural dissent and language in regard to what it mean for one to say, â€Å"I am American?† The law provides these answers in technical sense: as to be one that falls under a statutory or constitutional category having full participation and membership rights in the American polity (Del 55). The main ones, with few minor exceptions, are birth within the United States, birth to American parents overseas, and legal naturalization, all regulated by the federal government. If this is the case why do when family, friends, co-workers, and or even our general acquaintances refer to themselves as who they are, the response is too often either Italian, Irish, German, Greek, or French and so on, however, in reality they're not, they’re simply American. This false mindset of what people perceive themselves to be leads to a stronger divide, separation, and cultural resistance between the people within our society both politically and culturally, while deteriorating the true identity and morals of what it means to be an American which can be found deep as its foundation. In spite of this, calling oneself â€Å"Irish† can give way to a sense of pride and belonging to a unique nation, with a heritage of great deeds and tragic flaws, a set of ideals, and a singularly commanding and demanding position in today’s world. As discussed by Rogers M. Smith, for many Americans alike, the sentence â€Å"I am Irish† is also a revelation of their sense of attachment at the deepest emotional level to unique culture and moral standards. It has then much more than merely legal meaning; it evokes a statement of political and personal identity that is complex, powerful, and often contradictory to the ideas and sentiments for both American and non-Americans similarly (Del 55). Retrospectively, this divides our country; the false sense of attachment due to pride drives both natives and immigrants towards specific towns or counties while steering them away from others. The culture and customs of one's heritage often differs greatly between an American native and ones ancestry within a home country. Since the United States is an immigrant society, putting as much of your message as possible into words is important in order to let people know where one is coming from. People try to remove the possibility of misassumptions as they believe everyone is different and the degree which they are involved in the majority culture varies (Jasper, 19-25). The Japanese view their country differently; they’re racially and culturally homogeneous with a long history of tradition, so it is assumed that everyone knows and will play by the unspoken rules of the majority culture. The two cultures are both different from each other while have very little in common. When Japanese-Americans refer to themselves as Japanese they’re merely holding themselves to a lie. More than forty percent of the population of Japanese immigrants predominantly resides in Hawaii and despite gigantic differences in cultural tradition and descent the majority continues to call themselves Japanese. Rather than United States citizens,

American History Questions and Answers Assignment

American History Questions and Answers - Assignment Example Also the North, being rich in economic resources, was able to supply its armies with better equipment. The Union states owned most of the country’s industries including shipping, bank capital, railroad mileage, and taxable wealth. With bigger industries, the North does not need rely on foreign trade to provide materials for the war. It had its own commerce and industry to provide necessary supplies for its troops. Also, the North had a naval advantage to block the Southern ports so that it cannot receive their much needed supplies. Meanwhile, it cannot be said that the South had no reasons to believe that it is going to win the war. There are crucial advantages that the South had over the North such as its ‘home field advantage’, strong fighting spirit, more military leaders, and early war preparation. Since the civil war was fought with the North invading the South, soldiers from the Confederacy fought on a more familiar terrain that is close to home. Because of this, Southerners had strong fighting spirits being proficient in hunting, riding, and other skills necessary to fight within their territory. Also, the south had better military leaders since a higher proportion of Southerners had attended West Point and other military schools, became army officers, and fought in military operations. Adding to this, the South prepared for the war much earlier than the north which gave and this gave them an advantage when it comes to preparedness for the fight. 2. What were the Monitor and the Virginia? The USS Monitor were CSS Virginia the two famous ironclad warships which participated in the naval battle between the North and South. While the Union had a strong naval force, the confederate army was able to convert its steam frigate USS Merrimack into CSS Virginia as an ironclad rams that would sank one Union warship with its iron ram and 10 with its torpedoes. This sent panics in Washington that prompted them to build USS Monitor – a small er warship with two 11-inch guns with revolving turret. With its size, USS monitor presented a small target with an intense gun power with its revolving turret. Because of this, the naval war between the Monitor and Virginia was dubbed as the â€Å"battle of the ironclads†. It resulted to a draw with Virginia going home to Norfolk, unable to engage the battle again. 3. How did the South raise an army? What methods did they use to find men to fight? In 1862, the South instituted drafting by requiring three years of service for males who are 18 to 35 years old. Later however, the confederate decided to increase the draft age up to 45 in October 1862. Additionally, an overseer exemption was implemented for one white man who has 20 or more slaves on every plantation. According to the Twenty Negro Law, the purpose of this is to prevent slave uprising and to keep up the production. As such, many non-slaveholding farm families regarded the policy as discrimination towards them. As a result, the law provoked avoidance and widespread desertions in the Confederate army. Additionally, the South allowed substitution in its drafting policy, enabling drafted men to pay a commutation fee of $300 for exemption. Because of this, the policy was labeled as â€Å"rich man’s war, poor man’s fight† just like in the Northern States. 4. What was the Conscription Act of 1863? The Conscription Act of 1863 was signed by President Abraham Lincoln to require every male citizen and

Pro and Cons for Electric Car Essay Example for Free

Pro and Cons for Electric Car Essay Out of the many different kind of cars on the road today, one car stands above the rest. With its zero emissions and sleek design, the General Mortars EV 1 was unstoppable. This car runs entirely without gas or oil of any kind. It runs only on electric power which makes it very eco-friendly. This car was the answer to the smog problem in California and would soon be able to help stop global warming and more of our planets environmental issues. So, why are there none of these cars on the road today? Who made sure that none of these EV 1’s where ever mass produced. Who killed the electric car? This act did not go unnoticed by the public. Consumers were outraged by the recalling of the EV1’s. They wanted to know why someone would get rid of a car that would help out the environment and would make things better for future generations. Someone is to blame for killing the electric car, but whom? Was it the big oil companies and their fear of losing money? Could it be the battery technology in the EV1’s that was faulty? Maybe it was the CARB (California Resources Board) who did not want to support the project. Or was it the consumers themselves who would not accept the idea of a seemingly unreliable car? Chris Pine, the director of the documentary, â€Å"Who Killed the Electric Car? † says that all these factors are to blame. But, there could only be one who could take the name of Car Killer. The car companies are the biggest suspect in killing the electric car. General Motors was the car company that started the EV1 project. They started leasing them publicly in 1997. All 660 that were available for lease, got leased. Then in 2000, tragedy struck as all EV1’s were recalled and the plant was closed down. In 2003 GM officially closed down the entire EV1 project despite the long waiting lists and positive feedback from EV1 drivers. Why would the company that started the project in the first place, decide to shut in down without even 20 years of usage? General Motors said that the reason for pulling the plug of the EV1 was the fact that no consumer was willing to drive a car that you have to charge every hundred miles or so (CBC News). But, since there was a huge demand for the EV1’s in California, I think that is not the only reason. I think the car companies were afraid to lose money from the EV1’s good sales. They wanted to make sure that no other car would sell better than theirs. My opinion that the car companies killed the electric car but, other people see it differently. With a problem this big, maybe many factors are to blame. The consumers themselves need to take some of the blame; many did not like the idea of a car that runs of batteries. In this fast paced world we live in, they though the car would be unreliable. The batteries that run the EV1 are lead acid batteries that would only last 100 miles or so. The consumers wanted a better battery and if there were electric cars all over the world, the oil companies would lose a lot of their profit. Whatever the cause may be, the death of the EV1 will no doubt have a huge impact on the future. Until someone else comes up with a better model of an electric car, the planet will still suffer from global warming. In the future I think we will see more electric cars starting to make it father than the EV1.

The Pharmaceutical Industry Essay Example for Free

The Pharmaceutical Industry Essay 1) Describe the nature of supplying drugs to emerging markets at an affordable price without undermining their profits 2) Research and analyze in depth the effectiveness of one proposed policy response to this issue. (To use economics theory to analyze)    A drug described as a pharmaceutical product used to treat illness, made up of a chemically defined amount of pharmaceutically active ingredients. On the contrary a vaccine is a pharmaceutical product, a biological medicine is difficult to homogenize since it is designed using living systems. It is basically used for preventive purposes. Although the relative importance may vary, a number of facts that impact access to drugs vaccines are similar. [Milstien et. al, 2005] Patents, the monopolies granted by the State for a specified length of time for the commercial exploitation of a scientific or technological invention[navy Blue] are considered important incase of drugs so as to limit general access, as compared to vaccines. However the organizations are dependant on their patents the challenges faced by them, for gaining business; often disagreeing on this by saying that the patent protection has been exaggerated in World Health Organization list only 90% drugs are off- patent. [Strain 2007]   Ã‚   AIDS, a health calamity of unparalleled magnitude, caused by a virus in an individual, the plague must be seen as an economic, social political occurrence killing millions, while the international organizations have been trying to control the epidemic since the past 2 decades after identifying HIV, primarily caused by peoples sexual risk behavior . Leading organizations like the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) states that patents that range up to thousands of dollars, are vital for the protection of investments involved in research development of innovative drugs, failure of which may make it difficult to recover their investments for further projects. Some countries like India do not recognize the patents therefore successfully manufactures generic AIDS cheaply, however obstructions like primitive distribution systems cultural taboos did not allow them to succeed. Mainly the health problems are caused due to many factors overshadowing the under developed world like poverty, lack of health services, clean water proper sanitation. Non availability of efficient affordable medication treatments is the most important factor in this crisis. It is estimated that as a result of many infectious diseases like as acute respiratory infections, diarrhoeal diseases, malaria and tuberculosis around 14 million people die globally. Mostly in Africa South- East Asia infectious diseases alone are responsible for 45% deaths annually, the rate is high even in developing countries. [The health crisis in developing countries] In the developing countries each day around 8000 patients die of AIDS, in contrast to the West, where people always have had access to competent medicines    The year 2001 witnessed a rigorous increase in the AIDS crises in Africa, with statistics declaring more than 30 million HIV positive citizens. An important fact to consider is that the highly patented HIV drugs are more acute than any other disease. AIDS HIV patients in developed countries are getting extensive benefits since 1996, as a result living better improved lives through the expensive combinational anti-retroviral drug therapy (or HAART) which costs about 15,000 US Dollars per year. People living in under developed countries like Africa cannot afford such expensive treatments having only $10 per person [Watts, 2002]. This catastrophe has affected people all around the world, putting the Pharmaceutical companies in a dilemma, by having to choose between their philanthropic penchants their duty to achieve a profit. Especially the international community being burdened with extraordinary pressure regarding worldwide health issues, the pharmaceutical industry has become a fundamental feature of humanitarian work.   Ã‚   According to surveys, from the 39 million people who are suffering with AIDS globally, 25 million are in sub- Saharan Africa with life expectancy to fall by 20 years by the year 2010 due to AIDS HIV. 5 million people got infected in 2004, while 3.1 million died from AIDS. In Zimbabwe, life expectancy at birth was 34 years in 2003, compared with 52 years in 1990, Infection rate are still ranging high especially in China, ex- Russian federation states. The fundamental subject is the high costs of AIDS treatments. The standard cost of 1 years worth the standard treatment, a combination of 3 antiretroviral drugs, is estimated at US$10,000-15,000 as a result, the treatment out of reach of most people in the developing world, where 95% of the people with HIV are from (As quoted in The health crisis in developing countries). 9 out of 10 people infected with the virus are not receiving the required help in order to reduce the disease to a chronic condition. In the global market, pharmaceutical companies in Africa, Asia China represent less than 7%. From 1975 to 1996, among 1223 pharmaceutical products developed to fight diseases, only 11 were designed specifically for tropical illnesses. Maybe in 5 – 7 years vaccines will be developed for AIDS, the Global AIDS Fund needs between $ 10 to 15 billion to fight AIDS, however only $ 6.1 billion was received in 2004 or the US AIDS relief program. [The AIDS Epidemic and Pharmaceutical Companies, 2005] The Trade- related Intellectual Property Rights Agreement (TRIPS) in year 1995, guaranteeing protection of patents across the international market included pharmaceutical products along with other services in the World Trade Organization structure.   Ã‚   The recent years have seen the wealthy governments focusing vast amounts to treat the issues highlighting the world such as lack of clean water, the treatments of infectious diseases that eradicated 11 million people every year, the AIDS death rate is now exceeding by 3 million annually according to the World Health Organization (WHO). After increased pressure by the charity groups around the world such as Oxfam Medicins sans Frontieres to promote the easy availability of drugs, one of the leading global pharmaceutical organizations has planned to lower the cost of its HIV AIDS medicines in 63 poorest countries of the world. It is therefore extremely important for the pharmaceutical industries to take part in the fight against global health issues. However their main focus is the safeguarding of revenue not working on humanitarian inclination, often adopting strategies that eventually damage the mounting issues. [Strain 2007] Additionally, prices in the United States range much higher than in Britain, according to a recent U.S. General Accounting Office report.    The rise in the worldwide health crisis proves the philosophical malfunction of the international organizations to save lives decrease suffering. The subject has raised a number of issues on the pricing of drugs especially in poor countries gaining a lot of publicity when a case has been filed in South Africa court addressing the pharmaceutical companies to license their patents an announcement by Cipla, an Indian pharmaceutical firm that they would copy U.S. firms AIDS drugs sell them at sell them at cost to countries in Africa. [Rapp, 2002] Around 40 South African pharmaceutical companies are suing the South African government at the Pretoria High Court on March 5th to shield their profits ignoring the demise of millions of lives by HIV.   Ã‚   On the contrary, a realistic approach by the United Kingdom has been taken up leading to control, devoid of turmoil by a compromising agreement regarding the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS) between the British government the U.K. pharmaceutical industry governing the Prices of medications for the next 5 years under the National Health Service (NHS) involving limitation of profits to 17 -21% of engaged funds as well as pricing freedom for new products. In the advanced countries, HIV AIDS infected people are living a better life, since they have better medical treatments available. In [Geffen, 2001] Justice Edwin Cameron also HIV positive stated that, There are people throughout Africa†¦and nearly 34 million people in our whole world who are this moment dying. And they [are] dying because they dont have the privilege that I have, of purchasing my health and life.   The pharmaceutical industry had 625 registered lobbyists in DC in the year 2001 in 1999-2000 a combined lobbying having budget of $197 million. [Rapp, 2002] An industry having so much power, they are more focused to gain more revenue. It is a fact that expensive drugs like Prozac Viagra are more easily available promoted than any other life saving drug. It is important that the drug industries develop some concern about the suffering humanity design some strategies to control the major health issues in the world today. The governmental authorities should take steps to motivate the firms to allocate special funds low priced medicines especially targeted towards deserving nations. REFERENCE Alan Berkman, The Global AIDS Crisis: Human Rights, International Pharmaceutical Markets and Intellectual Property Symposium [accessed 19 January 2008] http://www.healthgap.org/press_releases/02/031402_HGAP_ALAN_PP_IPR.pdf Robert Strain, The Pharmaceutical Paradox: Helping and Harming the Developing World [2007] University of Pennsylvania [accessed 19 January 2008] http://humanities.sas.upenn.edu/essay.shtml The AIDS Epidemic and Pharmaceutical Companies: Ethics, Stakeholders and Obligations [2005] issue 7- BBS Teaching Research Review [accessed 19 January 2008] www.uwe.ac.uk/bbs/trr/Issue7/is711.pdf Julie B. Milstien, Amie Batson and Albert I. Wertheimer, Vaccines and Drugs: Characteristics of Their Use to Meet Public Health Goals [March 2005] The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development [accessed 19 January 2008] http://siteresources.worldbank.org/HEALTHNUTRITIONANDPOPULATION/Resources/281627-1095698140167/MilstienVaccinesDrugsFinal.pdf Access to medicines for the Developing World and the pharmaceutical industry [May 2005] EIRIS [accessed 19 January 2008] www.eiris.org/files/research%20publications/seeriskaccesstomedicine05.pdf The Pharmaceutical Industry and the AIDS Crisis in Developing Countries [Aug 13, 2001] Harvard Business School [accessed 19 January 2008] http://harvardbusinessonline.hbsp.harvard.edu/b02/en/common/item_detail.jhtml?id=702010 Richard T. Rapp, Civilized Pharmaceutical Price Regulations: Can The U.S. Have It Too? [2001] [accessed 19 January 2008] http://www.cato.org/pubs/regulation/regv17n2/reg17n2-rapp.html Jordi Martorell, Drugs companies putting profits before millions of peoples lives [9 March 2001] [accessed 19 January 2008] http://www.marxist.com/drugs-companies-profits090301-4.htm Heather Watts, International Trade, Generic Drugs and the Developing World [April 12, 2002] Deeth Williams Wall LLP. All Rights Reserved. [accessed 19 January 2008] http://www.dww.com/?page_id=1050 Cecilia Oh, The health crisis in developing countries [accessed 19 January 2008] http://www.twnside.org.sg/title/twr131a.htm Warren V.,What Price AIDS Drugs? Developing Countries and Strategies for Paying for AIDS Drugs. Acad Health Serv Res Health Policy Meet. 2002; 19: 6. Nathan Geffen, Applying Human Rights to the HIV/AIDS Crisis [May 6, 2001] [accessed 19 January 2008] http://www.cceia.org/resources/publications/dialogue/2_06/articles/646.html Cheap AIDS drugs for poor countries [June 7, 2001] [accessed 19 January 2008] http://edition.cnn.com/BUSINESS/programs/yourbusiness/stories2001/aids.drug.price/

Gene Therapy: History and Advancements

Gene Therapy: History and Advancements Gene therapy is an advanced and evolving technology that is being researched and developed extensively. It is an experimental technique that simply, introduces a gene into cells, in the place of a defective or missing gene to correct a genetic disorder. Gene therapy is very interesting and it is very important for scientists to grow the knowledge of gene therapy which can be expanded and applied to help correct different genetic disorders. In 1966, a paper was published by Edward Tatum, proposing the effectiveness of viruses to be used in gene therapy. A couple of years after the paper was published, a demonstration proved Edwards concept true. The term gene therapy arose during the 1960s and 1970s. The first successful patient to be treated with gene therapy was in 1990, a four-year-old girl who had ADA (Adenosine deaminase deficiency), a disease that severally affects the immune system and its ability to fight infections. The therapy consisted of her white blood cells being taken from her and being inserted with the correct genes for making ADA, which was then reinjected into her. Along with her, another nine-year-old was infused with their own corrected cells over a two-year period. Gene therapy has multiple uses, the main being used to fix defective genes or to replace missing genes. Researchers and scientists have been working on gene therapy for decades and the future is very encouraging. Gene therapy can be used to correct a mutated gene. Gene therapy has successfully cured multiple diseases such as immune deficiencies like Severe Combines Immune Deficiency, Adenosine deaminase deficiency, different types of inherited blindness, haemophilia, blood diseases, fat metabolism disorder and gene therapy treatments are under development for cancer. A promising discovery of an effective treatment for melanoma has provided hope for many cancer sufferers. Although gene therapy holds a promise for treating a range of diseases such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes, haemophilia, cystic fibrosis, it is only available as part of a clinical trial. Gene therapy is the future of curing diseases. Through the process of gene therapy, genes are able to be introduced into existing cells to cure a wide range of diseases. Some examples of gene therapy successes include: Parkinsons disease is a disease that targets the brain, causing the patient to lose cells. As the disease advances, the sufferers lose the ability to control their movements. After a small group of patients were treated by the introduction of new normal cells, they all had improved muscle control. Beta-Thalassemia is a disease where patients dont have enough red blood cells to carry oxygen throughout the body. Sufferers depend on constant blood transfusions for survival. In 2007, a patient with a severe blood disease received gene therapy to treat the blood stem cells. After the treatment, the patient was able to raise the level of healthy red blood cells. The patient is now living without blood transfusions. Immune deficiencies are among the first genetic disorders to be treated successfully by gene therapy. An example would be Severe Combined Immune Deficiency. SCID was one of the first to be treated by gene therapy. The cure for SCID has been modified since it was first discovered because the old cure could potentially trigger leukemia. The cure now uses safer vectors which are much less likely to cause cancer. Still in research, gene therapy is far from being perfected. Gene therapy has many risks because of this. Some risks may include inflammation because of how your immune system responded to the working gene copy, the working gene might be slotted in the wrong spot, the working gene might produce too much of the missing protein or enzyme it was targeted to do, causing complicated health problems and other genes may be delivered to the cell instead of the correct gene and the deactivated virus that was intended to target a cell might target another cell. Because gene therapy changes how your body functions, some people may be against that idea because they believe that it is ethically wrong to do. For example, some people might believe that God made us how we are and it is not up to us to change our genes and how they function to fix our imperfections. Gene therapy is still in development and conducting gene therapy clinical trials with genetically modified organisms presents potential safety and infection issues. All human clinical trials that are undertaken in Australia must be conducted under either the Clinical Trial Notification (CTN) or Clinical Trial Exemption schemes (CTX). In addition to the compliance to the CTN or CTX, any human clinical trials involving gene therapy must also require approval by the Gene Technology regulator under the Gene Technology Act of 2000. The intention of the Gene technology act is to protect the health and safety of people, and to protect the environment, by identifying risks posed by or as a result of gene technology. I believe that gene therapy is a big advancement in science. Gene therapy has the potential to revolutionize the way we can cure diseases. Gene therapy, if perfected, has an enormous potential to do good such as curing genetic disorders, but things such as genetic engineering are being researched more. There are already some foods such as rice, that has been genetically altered to have more minerals and vitamins, including vitamin A. This sort of genetic modification isnt bad because it can help increase vitamin levels in some populations of the world that do not have access to more nutritious foods. The concerning side to genetic engineering would be that scientists could find ways to manipulate anything wee need such as our height, build, gender, eye sight ability, potentially developing super-humans.