Summer Reading Assignment: About a Boy

Mr. Wilson English 11 5 September 2012 Summer Reading Assignment: About a Boy Insensible Will, who lives comfortably off of the money from a popular Christmas song his father wrote, comes up with the idea to join a Single Parents Alone Together, (SPAT), group in order to pick up single moms. What he chooses to overlook however, is the fact that he does not have any children. This sparks a chain of events beginning with him meeting Marcus, an awkward young teenage boy who is being raised by a depressed, single mother.Marcus is constantly tormented at school and feels as though he has no one to turn to. He becomes very fond of Will who is tolerant with him at first and begins to grow attached to his high strung personality. Marcus begins to gain confidence, learn how to deal with his mother, and win the affection of an older punk rocker girl named Ellie at his school. However spending time with Marcus begins to show Will just how empty his life really is. Marcus and Will cross paths at a SPAT get together when Marcus’s mom asks her friend Susie to bring him.That day is the when both Marcus and Wills’ life change forever. When arriving home from the SPAT party Susie, Marcus, and Will walk into Marcus’s mom Fiona passed out in her own vomit. In the mix of it all Marcus doesn’t even see that his mom had tried to overdose on pills. From that day forward Marcus constantly worried about his mother’s depression instead of worrying about himself, and how he gets picked on everyday at his school. It wasn’t until he met Will that Marcus realized why he was getting picked on.Fiona, Marcus’s mom, was in denial and believed that Marcus was just fine wearing ugly shoes, and listening to Mozart. Will helps him to find himself, and to shed his nerdy and dorky skin. As the months passed Marcus began to change and he started hanging out with this punk rocker girl Ellie. At first Marcus believed that he was in love with Ellie and tha t he could spend the rest of his life with her but after taking her to go see his father Marcus realizes she is just too different and crazy. At the end of the novel Will knows for sure that Marcus will be ok when he complains about Will askingFiona to take out sheet music of Marcus’s old favorite nerdy singer. He knows the days of Marcus letting kids bully him, steal his shoes, and mock him for his old haircut are gone. Will did not only help Marcus, but Marcus helped him. Before he was ever involved with Marcus, Will was a pot smoking, lazy, self centered person. However after everything he went through with Marcus, Will changed, and for the better. At the end of the novel Will had found love with this beautiful single mother, Rachel. Even Will realized that himself.He had lost his shell and his cool and his distance, and he felt scared and vulnerable, but he got to be with Rachel, and that’s all that mattered. Fiona at the beginning of the novel was a suicidal, depr essed, and horrible mother. Even after trying to kill herself she was still horrible. She didn’t even notice how hard of a time Marcus was having at school and she wanted to take away Will from Marcus when he was the only thing making her son happy. But as Marcus changed so did Fiona. She was longer so depressed and no longer hated Marcus as her son.Even though she has lost a big part of Marcus, she got to stay away from the hospital because she was no longer depressed. Change makes you flexible, and helps go with the flow. Change makes you smarter. If things never changed, you’d never learn anything new. And every time you learn something new its makes you smarter than you were yesterday. Change reminds us that anything is possible. It’s easy to think that anything that’s stuck will always be that way. Marcus, Fiona and Will all learned how to improve their lives and it was all because of each other.

Persuasive Speech Green Burials Essay

With the effects global warming and other natural disasters becoming more frequent, it is safe to say pollution has created a major crisis on our planet. Theses effect can be seen in the United State with the major cold front that has just pushed in from Canada over this past week. Scientist say weather patterns such as this will become more likely because of global warming. As an ecofriendly individual, I have taken the time to research many ecological ideas. Today I hope to persuade individuals to select green burials as an alternative burial option. A green burial or natural burial is the proper disposal of the deceased with as little carbon impact as possible to the natural environment. Green burials help conserve natural resources, produces little to no carbon emissions, aids in protecting the health of grave diggers, and restores and preserves the natural habitat. For the end-of-life ritual to be considered to be a â€Å"green burial,† there can be no usage of non-biodeg radable or toxic materials. People who select to engage in green burials are laid to rest in materials such as: shrouds or biodegradable caskets and urns. Why would a person select to be buried in such a manner, you ask? A green burial offers many positive affect upon the environment when compared to traditional burial methods. I would like to begin by saying that I do not consider any end-of-life method to be considered â€Å"wrong.† I only wish to advocate an alternative option to decrease to carbon footprint of our last act in the world. The act of embalming a loved on often includes the usage a chemical called formaldehyde. Formaldehyde poses a major threat to funeral directors and their funeral homes. In accordance to the National Cancer Institution, â€Å"funeral directors have a much higher incidence of myeloid leukemia.† Although embalming fluid does preserve the physical characteristic of a loved one, but after months in the grave the embalming fluid drastically decrease the decomposition rate of the body. Again I don’t wish to discredit any other form of burial. Green burials offer many positive aspects t hat aid the earth. Why should someone choose to have a green burial? Earth has  always intend to humans to return to the soil from which they came. In nature, nothing is wasted. Everything is recycled by billion upon trillions of tiny microorganisms that break down all waste matter. Natural burials also aid in the growth of native trees, wildflowers, and shrubs. These wild plants will bring about a whole new eco-system to the burial area that both plants and animals will benefit from. There is no water wasted on these grounds or harmful pesticides and herbicides because the area is left to grow naturally. Imagine the joy of being able to remember a loved one as a new tree that provides life to millions of organisms. Green burials are an ecofriendly way to leave a positive lasting impact upon the earth. In 2007 AARP conducted a study that showed, â€Å"1 in 5 American over the age of 50 have considered having a green burial ceremony.† Green burials is just one of many end-of-life rituals practi ced all around the world. Work Cited Markoe, Lauren. â€Å"Green Burials Reflect Care for Earth, Family Finances.† Christian Century 131.4 (2014): 18-19. Academic Search Premier. Wed. 11 November 2014. Unknown. â€Å"Green Burials,†¦Return Naturally.† Green Burials,†¦Return Naturally. N.p., 17 Sept. 2008. Web. 11 Nov. 2014. Unknown. â€Å"Green Burial Council.† Green Burial Council. N.p., 18 May 2012. Web. 11 Nov. 2014.

Goal Setting Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Goal Setting - Assignment Example A community health promotion will help improve this situation if the program sets and adheres to its objectives, as this essay suggests (Diffley, J. & Parker). In order to eliminate inequalities in healthcare provision among Philadelphians, and reduce gap between rich and poor, the healthcare providers will ensure that they offer their health services, to all; including poor and rich, thus the economically challenged patients will have equal access to healthcare. The rich have had an advantage in accessing quality health in the area, increasing poor health among the economically challenged. Therefore, access to quality healthcare will cease to base on economic status of a person (Green & Tones, 2010). Secondly, the community healthcare promotion will ensure that all the people participate in health promotion and strive toward their own empowerment. Through community mobilization, the people will be encouraged to take control of their lives, by making the right decisions in life, as the more empowerment they have, the more power they have to make decisions influencing their health. Public participation in health promotion will be ensured by challenging Philadelphians to be responsible for themselves, and take personal steps to address their life problems and improve their living conditions (Ludovici-Connolly, 2010). The third goal of this health promotion is to bring various influential partners on board. Factors of health promotion are wide, thus one party cannot achieve the goals alone, but with collaboration with different companies, the public, civil society, and private companies. Proposal writing inviting various partners to come on board will help in development of stronger strategies, and funding to ensure quality health among all Philadelphians (Green & Tones, 2010). Different obstacles have existed among Philadelphians, in their way to quality health. This community health promotion

International law seminar. Legal memo Case Study

International law seminar. Legal memo - Case Study Example This has enabled her rise above her competitors on the market. Packaging is a vital factor in trade that enables consumers to identify a particular item. An attractive way of packaging a product catches the buyer’s eye and this promotes sales hence earning much profit. It is on this note that Danielle decided to make her order of the boxes from Stuttgart Germany even though she was a citizen of United States. Entrepreneurship involves producers inventing new ways and approaches so as to dominate the market. This includes strategy. Proper strategy enables producers to counter challenges that may face their business. Therefore, Danielle wanted her chocolates to have a unique packaging feature hence going for the Box Masters Company. The paper indicates that since the bossiness partners originate from two different countries, the CISG shall be used as an applicable law. Danielle made an order of 40000 boxes of chocolate from her supplier. According to Danielle, the holiday season was a perfect time for her business since chocolates are favorites for a large number of people. The first issue indicates that the supplier delivered goods on 16th October as expected by Danielle, but they were not the boxes that she had ordered. This shows that they were normal boxes, which her competitors used on market. Her clients identified her chocolates from others on market as a result of her packaging design. The issue reflects that consumers will not be able to distinguish Danielle’s chocolates and this will lead to a loss. Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays offer reliable opportunities for business operations. Danielle was optimistic that she would make much profit similar to past years. Danielle wrote to the Box Masters informing them that the goods she had received were not what she had ordered. She explained to the company that using the normal boxes would make her lose customers, which would bring down her business. The Box Masters explained to the entrepren eur the challenges the company was facing, and indicated that they would send 10000 boxes by October 26th and finally deliver the remaining 30.000 boxes on November 16th. The Box Masters fulfilled their request where they delivered 10000 boxes on October 26. However, at that time damage had already taken place. Danielle had lost several clients as a result of the delay. The memo indicates that it was not imperative for the Box Masters to argue that Danielle could be sold the items on a subsided price. The mutual agreement between the buyer and the seller indicated a specific item and not just any item on shelf. Since they sent a wrong product they are required by law to stand in for the cost of shipment and insurance. According to article 16 of United Nation’s Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods [CISG] an offer may be revoked if goods reach the buyer before he has transmitted an acceptance. Therefore, from the above illustration, Danielle has aright to refuse the delivery of the 40000 boxes because they were dispatched without acceptance. It also states in article 17 of the CISG of the constitution that an offer is terminated when rejection reaches the seller. This can be shown since Danielle wrote to the Box Masters indicating that she had nothing to do with the normal boxes. According to this information, the Box Masters should make arrangements for the shipment of the normal boxes back to their warehouse since Danielle had paled a rejection. The main objective of any business venture is to satisfy her

Trade Domestic Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Trade Domestic - Research Paper Example s, examining them within their current context, and extrapolating them with respect to additional literature and the means through which these themes have an impact upon economics and trade, a cursory overview and analysis of these articles will be provided. This summary review will serve as a means of providing the reader with an effective baseline of knowledge that they can then leverage to understand and engage the themes which will be discussed at further length within the preceding pages. The first article, entitled â€Å"Access to Protection: Domestic Institutions and Trade Policy in Democracies†, provides a baseline of understanding with respect to promoting the realization that protection of certain aspects of the economy is a role in which individuals, states, and institutions are intrinsically interested in accomplishing. The underlying rationale that can of course be given for this is with respect to the fact that freely competing within the open market, with any particular economic good, represents a situation in which the undercutting power of competition could easily see profit margins decreased or if that operate entirely. As such, the authors place a great deal of emphasis with regards to understanding the role in which parties in governance, districts within an electorate, the nature of the vote, and other such institutions impact upon protection. Further, the ultimate hypothesis, which is eventually proven, has to do with the fact that once these factors are ultimately controlled for, they are no longer exhibited as having a profound impact with respect to trade policy. Beyond merely coming to a further realization with respect to the impact of protection of economic goods or services, and an analysis of the intervening macro economic theory that helps to define these, the article is also able to give a fairly accurate baseline with relation to the precursors of protection and â€Å"protectionism†. Understanding these precursors is of course a

Electronic Communication in the Workplace Assignment

Electronic Communication in the Workplace - Assignment Example An unfortunate incident in the corporate sector is that of Royal and SunAlliance Insurance Company. The organization sacked and disciplined employees involved in the distribution and emailing of pornographic content. The time allocated to the viewing and distribution of the illegal content at the workplace is a clear indication of misappropriation of resources in the company. The unanticipated fall in employee count disorganized the structure of the organization. Consequently, the output of the organization decreased. The company ought to address the misconduct of email at work through employment policies. It is necessary for each staff to go through these policies and agreeing to them by signing the document if it is in hard copy. Installation of email filtering software is vital for monitoring the employees and in punishing the offenders of the employment policies. In addition to that, the employer is responsible for addressing the issue in regular meetings by insisting a high level of formality in the use emails both externally and internally. Implementation of the mentioned guidelines at the workplace is a holistic approach to the elimination of unproductiveness at the workplace while promoting ethics in the business. The purpose of writing is to announce the implementation of guidelines for the use of the company’s email as a tool of communication within the workplace. The decision resulted from recently revealed statistics on the abuse of the resource in the company. The use of employment policies as a guideline is vital in mitigating the email misuse. Employment policies of the company have undergone revision. The inclusion of Internet and email use as a section in the policies is a necessary move in the implementation and enforcement of the rear mentioned guideline. Attached is a revised copy of the employment policies. Take time to go through each policy related to the use of Internet and email.  

ICT's in a global context Article Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

ICT's in a global context - Article Example The Internet has also led to an increase in globalisation. Businesses are now able to expand and provide their services and goods in other countries; international financial institutions have been created, and the advanced modes of transportation have all contributed to the spread of globalisation (Global Policy Forum 2008). ICT has been instrumental in business, education, health and politics, but this too comes at a price. The Internet has made communication easier through sharing information. "As of 2006, according to Internet World Stats, around 70% of the population in the United States is on the Internet. Throughout the world, there are almost 1.1. billion users of the Internet as of 2006 and half of them reside in Europe and Asia" (Get ISP.info 2008).This number seems rather small when considering that it only represents about 1/6 of the population. Given this, worldwide use of the Internet is expected to increase. ICT has provided a means for people around the world to communicate with each other, but what price do we pay for such a convenience' If only 1/6 of the world population is on the Internet, this suggests that either the rest of the population does not own a computer, or they are just not interested in the Internet. Either way, several people will be left behind because they do not have knowledge of the Internet or how it works. ICT has had a significant influence on the economy. The production of goods in the global market has increased dramatically, and more avenues have opened for trade amongst different countries. This, in turn, creates more jobs for people and higher revenues for businesses. These businesses also benefit from ICT because of the creation of E-business. "E-business allows for information to be acquired and goods and services purchased via the Internet with increasing trust, speed and volume" (Enterprise and Industry, 2008, p. 1). This proves to be a problem for those who do not have the necessary capital to compete in such a market. What about small business owners who do not have the advantage of providing their services to global markets' In this case, they may be forced out of business because the larger companies are far more advanced technologically (Enterprise and Industry 2008). ICT has also had a significant impact on how companies are able to market their services and goods. Websites have provided an easier way for consumers to shop and pay for their products online. (ERDF 2008). The formation of networks within businesses also provided a way to share secure information via a server. Networks allow for pertinent information to be stored in a central location so that all employees have access to it. This also allows for businesses to maintain their competitive edge given that they have the most up-to-date technology and software. Staff also needs to be trained on how to operate new equipment in order to help develop the company, and provide quality services to its customers. Along with the impact that it has had on businesses, ICT has also contributed to globalisation. Emails, airplanes, boats, phone services, and computers have all made it easier for world countries to communicate and depend on one another. There are now more international laws and social movements that were formed based on

Market Segmentation in Healthcare Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Market Segmentation in Healthcare - Assignment Example With the development of many technologies, companies are benefiting from this strategy because they carry out due diligence to know the likely risk they are to encounter hence adapting to market segments. First, market segment helps organizations in reducing risk by knowing when, how and where to channel their products and services upon production (Kotler, 2003). It assists the organization to know when and how to market their products and serviced depending on their target markets. Secondly, segment marketing assists organizations in increasing marketing efficiency because it directs them to the target consumers, hence minimizing other wastages (Kotler, 2003). It allows organizations to produce or distribute goods and service according to a segments’ characteristics, which is very effective. In many cases, organizations make losses when they produce goods and offer services without knowing their target markets or audiences (Brown, 1996). Thirdly, market segmentation helps com panies to study consumer behavior, which is useful in pre-focusing of sales volumes and in making recommendations (Kotler, 2003). Organizations that conduct market segmentation knows the seasons when their target consumers are active in buying; hence, they can use this information in planning their productions as well as in focusing the sales volume (Walston, Kimberly & Burns, 1996). Market segmentation is divided into four levels, namely; geographic, demographic, psychographic and behavioral segmentation, and they serve different purposes depending on different factors (Kotler, 2003). Geographic segmentation is a strategy where a company or an organization sells its products and services in certain places in the world or in a defined boundary where it perceives to impact its marketing mix (Nobel & Mokwa, 1999). Demographic segmentation is where an organization divides its market as per gender, age, income, and household income, as opposed to all consumers in the market (Nobel & Mok wa, 1999). In this case, an organization becomes specific to the target gender, age, and income when entering a market.

Building a Fleet of Vehicles That Are Able To Serve the Local Demand Essay

Building a Fleet of Vehicles That Are Able To Serve the Local Demand - Essay Example Such instances can be discouraging and unpleasant to clients; more especially in instances where the clients are used to driving specific kinds of cars. In instances where clients fail to find there preferred cars for rental, they are compelled to either settle for the available cars or seek alternative providers. This is either down-cresting or time consuming depending on the option a client opts for. Zip Car Rental seeks to bridge this gap and ensure clients get value for their services through tailor-made services, in addition to getting satisfactory services. Setting up a car rental company requires earlier acquaintance with the industry and hence prior knowledge of the dynamics affecting the industry. Although starting such a business may be considered easy to start, it actually is not and requires a more problem-oriented approach. The proposed approach to solving the described problem takes into multiple considerations that will enhance the position of the business within the industry. A deeper into the fundamentals of the business reveals that procedures for car rental are way more complicated in terms of sales handling as well as managerial operations. This is, as a matter of fact, due to the fact that it does involve a sale of single inventory units (cars), it instead focuses on the allocation of time for usage of the vehicles. The main features will include: The car rental business is one characterized by lots of risks, not just to those who hire cars but also to the fleet of cars and entire business operations. Consequently, liability insurance is important to secure the business from possible losses resulting from any of the aforementioned risks. For a car rental business, the car fleet is a central asset in ensuring success.  Consequently, it will be important to come up with a fleet of diverse cars that will satisfy the needs of the diverse market.  Ã‚  

Evaluating Websites Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Evaluating Websites - Essay Example It is a very motivating website for the kids of grade 1 and grade 2 and it is sure to intrigue them. There are several mathematical concepts that have been described very well on this website and the same can be incorporated from this website. It will simply things for the young students. This website is ideal for grade 2 and grade 3 students and it is little advanced than the first website, it talks about noble prize, flags of different countries, various animals and a host of other stuff. The special feature about this website is its trivia; it is intriguing and makes learning very easy. It can teach the students a lot and hence it should be shown to the students in order to ensure that the students learn a lot of new concepts. This is a very advanced level website and it can even be shown to the 5th grade students, it offers a lot of help on subjects like math, science, social studies. It also provides a lot of information on computers, this adds to the utility of this website. The other websites mentioned above don't offer much help on computers but this website is different and hence it should be shown to the students. This website is very useful when it comes to learning English, it offers a variety of stories to choose from. All the stories have intriguing pictures on them and this is a good way of luring the students to read these stories. This website can of good use to the students, this will surely make their language skills sharper and better than never before. This is why this website must be used in the class. Grade5: Kids.Yahoo Link: http://kids.yahoo.com/science Subject: Science This is another very interesting website and certainly the most matured of all the other websites. This website throws light upon concepts like the movement of planets and other related material. It should be shown in the class in order to explain abstruse concepts and in order to make the students understand those abstruse concepts easily. This website has a lot to offer and it must be shown to the students in order to ensure that they learn new concepts with interest.

Contributions of Ancient Greece and Rome to the Western World Essay Example for Free

Contributions of Ancient Greece and Rome to the Western World Essay While both Roman and Greek cultures greatly influenced Western Civilization, Greeks contributed more to the western world than the Romans. The Greeks used their own ideas and thought of new ways to add to their culture, while the Romans mostly mixed and matched ideas from other civilizations and cultures to make their own. The Romans took up the inheritance of the Greeks adapted it to their own language and national traditions. (Grant 2)The Greeks introduced many new ideas and traditions, the most important being democracy Athenian democracy in particular. After the Dark Age, the population in Greece grew so quickly that soon, there were way too many free peasants. These peasants realized that nobody could stop them if they tried to make some changes because there was so many of them, so they insisted on having their voices heard by the government. Their wish was granted, and democracy in its simplest form became known. Now that the peasants had more freedom, some of them started to earn higher wages, and soon were rich enough to purchase hoplite armor. (Hoplites made up the majority of the army and fought on foot.) The peasants were also placing strong demands on the elite class, also known as the oligarchy. The system of citizenship in Greece was established as a result, during the late 7th century BCE (Martin 82), and enabled the peasants to have more influence on their leaders and protection under the law. There were three kinds of citizens the rich, the hoplites, and the poor. Only males were citizens. All citizens could attend open meetings in the Assembly, elect archons (leaders) each year, and were protected under the law. The peace of Greece had been slowly deteriorating, and in 621 BCE, it only got worse. The rich, elite class had been accumulating farmland from the poor farmers, who had to pack up and leave once a rich person took their land. A poor farmer had a hard time gaining wealth because any wealth they did gain would be in the form of surplus grain. Extra grain was not permanent, and could not be converted into money since coins were not invented yet. Then in 621 BCE, Draco was appointed to establish a code of laws to help bring stability by changing the situation. But his laws were so harsh that they only destabilized the people more. Civil war threatened to break out until 594 BCE when the Athenians gave Solon power to revise Dracos  laws and deal with the crisis. His new laws steered a middle course (Martin 84) between the demands of the rich and the demands of the poor. He introduced the right of appeal to the Assembly, forbade the selling of Athenians into slavery, and sorted male cit izens into four classes based on income. Overall, Solon helped to make democracy more peaceful. After a short period of tyranny, the democratic system was reinstalled and new rules were made yet again. Cleisthenes organized villages in Athens into trittyes according to location, and each of the trittyes was divided into phylai, or tribes. He also started to keep track of which males were old enough to vote and join the Assembly, with the voting age at eighteen. The Assembly would choose fifty representatives by lot from each tribe. Each representative would get to serve for one year on a council of five hundred men. Also, ten men were selected by officials with the highest military authority to serve as strategoi, or generals, in the army. (Martin 88)Another reform was made after an earthquake near Sparta in 465 BCE created tension between Sparta and Athens, and a crisis in formal affairs took place. Athens sent military help to Sparta that was rejected in a complicated series of events. As a result, in 461 BCE, Ephialetes convinced the Assembly to limit the influence of Areopagus the highest judicial and legislative council of ancient Athens that met on a hill west of the Acropolis. (Martin 110) A new judicial system was created with juries of males over thirty years old chosen by lot to serve for one year. Ostracism was also established. If the general public submitted over six thousand ballots, the man who had his name on the most ballots was exiled for ten years. In general, democracy rested on the belief that the cumulative political wisdom of the majority of the voters would outweigh the eccentricity and irresponsibility of the few. (Martin 113)In addition to democracy, the Greeks most important contribution to Western civilization, many elements of modern culture are rooted in ancient Greece. Philosophers, especially Plato, Aristotle, and Socrates impacted the way people thought about the world around them. Greek architecture is still commonly used today, as evidenced by our use of pillars and columns. The ancient Greeks also excelled in sculpting. They figured out how to make graceful, emotional, and realistic statues which needed no additional support. Poetry,  theatre, and drama also made up an important part of Greek culture. Some Greeks studied science, math, history, and their studies form the basis of many of todays theories. Science helped others understand a little more of these subjects. In Greece, as in todays world, science was based on observation, not myth, even though myths were considered an important part of life to every Greek. The Greeks are also considered to be the first people who recorded history only after consulting witnesses, forming the base of modern history. One exceptionally significant custom of the Greeks still observed today is the Olympics. These ancient games incorporated a concept of free athletic competition without bloodshed. If the Greeks were engaged in war at the time the Olympics were to take place, they would pause for three days and compete in many different events. At first, there were only a few competitions, but as the Olympics became more popular, additional sports were included. The four main contests of the ancient Olympics were the long jump, the javelin throw, the discus throw, and wrestling. At one time, the Olympics were for male Greek citizens only, but today people of various nationalities, men and women, can take part in this unique Greek custom. The Olympics were also very different from the Roman sport games, such as gladiator fighting or the Roman form of wrestling, where humans and animals were killed. Even though Romans did use many ideas and designs from Greeks and other cultures, they also thought of their own. A considerable contribution of the Romans to the Western World is their system of government a Republic. Republic comes from the word respublica, which means a matter for the people. (Corbishley 15) Officers in the Republic included consuls, praetors, censors, quaestors, adiles, and the senate. Consuls had the same powers as a king, but unlike a king, they were elected each year by the citizens and had to serve in pairs. The praetors were the chief judges, the censors kept track of who could vote, the quaestors looked after the state finances, and the adiles were in charge of public works. The senate was a body made up of ex-officials that formed a parliament to discuss matters and advise the other officials. As in the Athenian democracy, only male citizens could vote, but the people of ancient Rome were glad they had a republic, and they  hated the word rex, or king. The Romans excelled in literature, poetry, law, engineering, state organization, military training and organization, painting, sculpture, and architecture. They also had games in the amphitheater sports like chariot races, gladiator fights, fake battles in ships, and fights with wild animals. The Romans had a complex law system that was the foundation for Italian, German, French, and Spanish law. The Roman techniques of interpreting the law and their legal system of lawyers and judges were also incorporated into many other cultures. There were three kinds of laws. Civil law was for Roman citizens only, and there were laws for those people who were not citizens, but lived in Roman provinces or on the outskirts of Roman towns. The third type of law was natural law, deciding between right and wrong. Civil law and the other laws could be created by the Assembly, praetors, senate, emperors, and jurists. They created many different laws. They made sure there was a variety of laws, to deal with every situation, and these multiple laws helped the kingdom of Rome run smoothly. The Romans were also great engineers. They paved roads wide enough for the whole army, built walls around their cities for protection, and even had apartment buildings. They also had aqueducts, built high above the ground to carry water to the cities. Arches, a very important Roman invention, helped the aqueducts to stand strong without collapsing. Arches were also used in buildings like the Coliseum, the Forum, and basilicas. Many early churches were built using the plans of the Roman basilicas. Other buildings had vast domes. Roman engineers did not want these magnificent domes to collapse, either, so they thought of coffering as a solution. Coffering is also known as placing decorative, sunken panels in a ceiling to make it lighter. Romans added other things to buildings to make them more attractive, like fountains, pillars, and sculptures. The Roman civilization made many of their buildings out of brick and mortar, and even concrete. Engineering is, indeed, the most noticeable Roman influence on Western civilization, seen in many public buildings and even houses. Beyond arches and coffers, Roman people did not focus so much on the structure of their buildings as the facades and interiors. They combined Greek columns with fancy arches to make majestic entrances, and painted splendid pictures on walls of mythical characters and nature scenes. Roman sculptors copied Greek masterpieces, adding to the collection of Greek works in existence. They learned how to sculpt faces more realistically and how to make better portraits, and as a result made some pretty remarkable portrait busts of famous people. In addition, the Romans developed a continuous sculpture relief, something like a comic strip that wound around pillars, the most famous of which is known as Trajans column. Many great rulers governed Rome, including Trajan, and over time helped develop an extremely organized empire. At one time, the Roman administration was split into four levels. Two emperors ruled over four prefectures, who in turn governed three or four vicars each. Each vicar presided over one diocese, and each diocese was split up into many provinces. Early Christians saw how organized this system of government was, that it was one of the reasons Rome was so powerful, and based their own leadership system on this Roman model. The Greeks and the Romans both contributed much to Western Civilization, but the Greeks seem to have contributed more. The Romans took many ideas from the Greeks and even copied sculptures and other artwork for their own houses and public places, so that much of what they had was Greek. Thus, without the Greeks, the Romans would not have been as impressive of a civilization. This quote best describes the influence of the Greeks and Romans on the world today: we ourselves, whether we like it or not, are the heirs of the Greeks and Romans. In a thousand different ways, they are permanently and indestructibly woven into the fabric of our own existences. The Romans intertwined Greek culture with other cultures and added their ideas to make what they called their own culture. They then showed it to the rest of Europe through conquering the people, who adopted it and blended it into their civilizations. These civilizations developed into strong European societies, and eventually the ideas and traditions became known as Western civilization. So, really, it all started with the Greeks. Bibliography Corbishley, Mike. Cultural Atlas for Young People: Ancient Rome. New York: Facts on File, 1989. De Fabianis, Valeria Manferto, ed. Ancient Rome: History of a Civilization that Ruled the World. New York: Stewart, Tabori Chang, 1996Grant, Michael. The Founders of the Western World: A History of Greece and Rome. New York: Charles Scribners Sons, Maxwell Macmillan Int., 1991Martin, Thomas R. Ancient Greece: From Prehistoric to Hellenistic Times. New Haven, Eng.: Yale University Press, 1996. Pomeroy, Sarah B., Stanley M. Burnstein, Walter Donlan, and Jennifer Tolbert Roberts. Ancient Greece: A Political, Social, and Cultural History. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999. Powell, Anton. Cultural Atlas for Young People: Ancient Greece. New York: Facts on File, 1989.

Nursing A Patient Receiving Ostomy Surgery Nursing Essay

Nursing A Patient Receiving Ostomy Surgery Nursing Essay Various gastrointestinal and genitourinary etiologies may need the creation of urinary or fecal diversion. These may include inflammatory bowel disease, diverticular disease, intestinal obstruction, colon-rectal cancer, gynecological cancers and gastrointestinal trauma (Beitz, 2004). Indications for coming up with the urinary stoma include; neurogenic bladder, bladder cancer, refractory radiation cystitis and interstitial cystitis. The cause of the disease will determine if the condition will be a temporary or permanent one (Thomas and McGinnis 2004). Among various types of surgically created ostomies, colostomy involves the opening made on the large intestine to allow for the passage of stool. The location of colostomy can be in sigmoid, transverse or ascending position. In this case, surgical resection will ultimately determine the stool output consistency. Ileostomy is a surgical construction from the small intestine and it is located high in the gastrointestinal route hence the stool output is comparatively of high quantity and liquid consistency (Gordon and Vasilevsky, 2004). Ileal conduit or urostomy is made using a short portion of the ileum to assist in urine elimination. Ureters are connected to conduit to allow urine to flow out of the body into ostomy pouch through the stoma (McGinnis and Tomaselli, 2004). Whether the ostomy is temporary or permanent, nurses must posses the knowledge to give the patient and the family the necessary information to improve recovery and enable a positive experience when obtaining informati on about ostomy care. Patient education. Any patient who is scheduled for an ostomy surgery can experience a number of feelings like fear, anxiety, depression and loss of body image especially if the cause of the surgery is a diagnosis related to cancer. Pre operative teachings assist the patient by receiving these feelings and contribute to quick recovery of the patient (Oshea, 2001). A very important ingredient in the teaching procedure before the operation is the Wound Ostomy and Continence Nurse (WOCN). Counseling before the operation allows for the assessment of the patients knowledge about the disease, support systems, level of education, employment, physical activity involvement, financial concerns and hobbies. Assessment of any physical shortcomings is also necessary because poor manual dexterity, poor vision and loss of hearing may affect the patients ability to undertake ostomy self care. Patients spiritual and cultural beliefs should be also assessed because certain particular rituals concerning ostomy care may n eed to be taken in. Employing all these factors can assist the patient to recover successfully and feel confident in managing the condition (Oshea, 2001). WOCN reviews the cause of the disease, stoma characteristics, surgical procedure, peristomal skin care, dietary considerations and a variety of ostomy appliances. If appropriate teaching proceedings may enable the patient to have an insight of the ostomy pouching system. Use of teaching booklets and illustrations helps to improve the education. Another component of preoperative teaching is the stoma site marking. This is recommended for all who are set to undergo a permanent or temporary stoma (Goldberg and Carmel, 2004). A poorly located stoma on the patients abdomen can lead to peristomal skin complications, stool and urine leakage, stoma, emotional and physical stress for the patient. During stoma site marking, there is abdomen assessment with the patient in sitting standing and lying positions. Also the abdomen can be assessed for the skin folds, bony, creases, scars and prominences. Patients belt and line should be avoided from the stoma site and not affect any prosthetic devices. The stoma site should also be put in an area that the patient can visualize and access. Ideal stoma site is situated in the anal muscle that extends to symphysis from the xyphoid process (Goldberg and Carmel, 2004). Nursing education. In stoma assessment the patient must enter the operating room with the pouching system on stoma. Immediately after the operation the, a transparent pouch is recommended to enable the nurse to have a view of stoma characteristics and stool and urine presence (Goldberg and Carmel, 2004). Initially after the operation period, the stoma can appear edematous, red, shiny and moist. In general terms, the stoma is red to pink in color according to tissue that was used in construction. Brown to dark color may show stoma ischemia and the consultations must be made with the physician. The shape of the stoma ranges from round to oval. It changes its shape and size in a period of six to eight weeks after the surgery. Since the stoma decreases in size with time, the nurse must use a skin barrier that has been cut to fit to the stoma (Goldberg and Carmel, 2004). For the first six to eight weeks after the surgery, measurements of the stoma should be taken each time the barrier of the skin is changed. Measuring guides are provided to measure round stomas, oval stomas will need the length and width measurements of the stoma (Colwell, 2004). Lack of sphincter by the stoma to regulate the passage of urine or stool, then the opening should be placed near the center of the stoma to aid the flow of urine and stool (McCann, 2002). The stoma may not or may protrude out of the skin surface. Stomal protrusion vary from a flush stoma at the skin level to a moderate one which is about 1-3 cm in length (Erwin-Toth and Doughty, 2002). Actually, stoma protrusion should be at least 0.8 inches above the skin level (Colwell, 2004). Protruding stoma helps urine and stool to flow into the pouch directly. A flush stoma is not suitable because it can cause difficulties when skin barrier attaches to it and leakage of stool below the skin barrier leading to peristomal skin irritations. The stoma output is determined by the location of ostomy. The output resulting form the ascending colon produces a semi liquid consistency whereas the one from the transverse colon produces a semi-liquid to pasty consistency and the one located in a sigmoid or descending colon will be more of a solid stool (McCann, 2002). An Ileostomy stool output is constant and watery with a lot of digestive salt and digestive enzymes. At the initial postoperative stages, the stool may be greenish and thick. The stool output from Ileostomy range from 800-1,700 cc in one day (Colwell 2004). When the patient comes back to the regular diet, there is development of the stool consistency from the ileum and a reduced out put in a daily basis ranging from 500-800cc/day. With time the small intestines recovers and with a decrease in stool output (McCann, 2002). Urine is immediately produced after the surgery by the Ileal conduit stomas. It is usually normal for the urine to be blood-tinged after the operation. Also the small intestines produce mucous which may be seen in urine (Colwell, 2003). Peristomal skin care involves the protection of the peristomal from coming into contact with the urine and stool to stop the occurrence of peristomal skin complications. Skin barrier needs to be properly measured to suit the stoma. If the skin barrier opening is too large, urine or stool will cause irritation on the peristomal skin area. The opening should not be more than 2cm larger than the size of the stoma. Cleanliness of the peristomal skin can be done by gently using warm water then dry it. Moisturizing soaps must be avoided because they affect negatively the skin barrier attachment. Male patients need to be taught trimmed peristomal using electric razor, scissors and other safety devices in an outward manner from the stoma (McCann, 2002). When choosing the pouching system of the patient, the information that was gathered before the operation is heavily relied upon. Other factors to be considered include location of the stoma, its size and shape plus the anatomical location. Pouching system should give anticipated wear time and protect the underlying skin from stool and urine (Colwell, 2003). Most of the pouching systems are designed in a way that the weight is light, easy to maintain and odor-proof (Colwell, Carmel and Goldberg, 2001). One of the most important components of the pouching systems is the skin barrier because it protects the peristomal skin from stool and urine (Colwell, 2004). Skin barriers can be found in either cut-to fit or pre-cut product. The pre-cut models are meant for the round stomas. Barrier opening should fit stoma size to limit the probability of the urine and stool coming into contact with the peristomal skin. The cut-to fit models can be used in oval stomas or the ones which are irregular in shape. The cut-to fit barriers are the commonly recommended in initial postoperative stage because the size of the stoma will reduce for not less than six to eight weeks from the day the surgery was performed. A large skin barrier may cause peristomal skin problems resulting from the exposure to stool or urine (Colwell, 2004). Skin barrier wear time is necessary; the barriers are either classified as extended or standard. The difference between the two lies in their interaction with the moisture and the degree of affinity to the skin. The two barriers absorb the moisture. However, the extended model absorbs moisture slowly as compared to the standard model. This delays the erosion of the skin barrier (Colwell, 2003). Skin barriers have flat or convex shapes. At the back of a f lat barrier is one level surface while the convex one has an outward protrusion. Skin barriers are made with in-built convexity which is created by putting the ring into the barrier. The intention of the curve is to place pressure in a downward position to the peristomal skin to enable the stoma to protrude in an outward position (Colwell, 2003). Different convexity depths are referred to as deep, moderate and shallow. Generally convexity is used in stomas which are flat and retracted to minimize urine and stool leakage below the pouch. Also the convexity can be used in abdomens with skin folds or soft abdomens in peristomal skin (Colwell, 2004). Various ostomy pouching systems are available. It is therefore necessary to elaborate to the patient that the systems used in hospital after surgery may not be necessarily the system he or she will continue using after recovering from the operation. The following must be considered while selecting the ostomy pouching system; the ostoma size and shape, effluent type, presence or absence of abdominal folds and contours and the type of the ostomy. The patients manual and visual dexterity must be considered as well including day to day activities (Colwell, 2004). Pouches sealed to the barrier are categorized as a single piece, and systems that are connected to the skin barrier are seen as a double piece. A two piece pouch gives the patient the capacity to change or remove it without altering the skin barriers. Again it is easier to position the skin barrier at the middle of the stoma. One mechanism for making sure that a two piece pouch is closed is will ultimately depend on the ability of the patient to snap the pouch and the wafer together. Application of the pouch to the wafer will require the patient to be instructed so that he or she can listen to an audible click to make sure that the pouch is safe to the skin barrier.

The Genetics of Identity and Normalcy (2001-2015)

The Genetics of Identity and Normalcy (2001-2015) This chapter chronicles the fascinating history of discovery in the study of the genetics of identity and normalcy. Key concepts covered: Race assignment of individuals does not carry any general implication about genetic differentiation. Intelligence is heritable. Sex identity is physical; gender identity is psychological. There is strong evidence that sexual orientation and social behavior are hereditary. Epigenetics is the study of changes in organisms caused by modification of gene expression rather than alteration of the genetic code itself. Race and Intelligence The desire to categorize humans along racial lines, and the impulse to superpose attributes such as intelligence (or criminality, creatively, or violence) on those lines, illustrate the general theme concerning genetics and categorization. Race Polygenic trees based on the DNA sequencing of people throughout the world have shown that Africans represent the root of the trees. This is interpreted as evidence that humans evolved in Africa, and then migrated across the globe. As humans colonized and settled permanently in various parts of the world, they differentiated themselves into distinct groups called races. Undoubtedly, many of the features that distinguish races, such as skin color or body shape, were adaptive in the local setting. Nevertheless, genomic analysis has revealed that the vast proportion of genetic diversity (85 to 90 percent) occurs within races and only a minor proportion (7 percent) between racial groups. The differences between races are superficial, based on the alleles of a relatively small number of genes that affect external features. So race assignment of individuals does not carry any general implication about genetic differentiation. For race and genetics, the genome is a one-way street. You can use genome to predict where X or Y came from. But, knowing where A or B came from, you can predict little about the persons genome. Intelligence Intelligence has historically been conceptualized as a more or less trait. Is intelligence heritable? Studies of twins do in fact provide strong evidence for the heritability of intelligence. The scores of identical twins reared apart are highly correlated (0.74). In addition, adopted childrens scores are highly correlated with the scores of their birth parents and not with the scores of their adoptive parents. Also significant are findings that heritability can differ between ethnic and racial groups, as well as across time within a single group; that is, the extent to which genes vs environment matter in IQ depends on many factors, including socioeconomic status and education. Sex Identity v. Gender Identity In 1903, Nettie Stevens, a graduate study in Biology under Thomas Morgan, was the first to recognize that females have two large sex chromosomes in the shape of Xs and that males have one of full size X and another that is missing a portion, making it resemble a Y. Later, she corroborated with Edmund Wilson a cell biologist, to discover the XY Sex Determination System. The XY system works like this. During meiosis the male XY sex-chromosome pair separates and passes on an X or a Y to separate sperms; the result is that one-half of the sperm that are formed contains the X chromosome and the other half contains the Y chromosome. The female has two X chromosomes, and all female egg cells normally carry a single X. The eggs fertilized by X-bearing sperm become females (XX), whereas those fertilized by Y-bearing sperm become males (XY). Unlike other pairs of chromosomes in which each member normally carries alleles of the same genes, the paired sex chromosomes do not carry an identical complement of genetic information. The X chromosome, being larger, carries many more genes than does the Y. Sex Identity In the early 1980, a young geneticist in London named Peter Goodfellow (1951- ) began to hunt for the sex-determining gene on the Y chromosome. He intended to use the Botsteins gene mapping technique to narrow down the search to a small region of the Y chromosome. But how could a normal gene be mapped without the existence of a variant phenotype, or an associated disease? But how can you find such a variant? The answer came in 1955 when Gerald Swyer, an English endocrinologist investigating female infertility, discovered a rare syndrome that made humans biologically female but chromosomally male. Women born with Swyer dyndrome were anatomically and physiologically female throughout childhood, but did not achieve female sexual maturity in early adulthood. When their cells were examined, geneticists discovered that they had XY chromosomes in all their cells. The most likely scenario behind Swyer syndrome was that the master-regulatory gene that specifies maleness had been inactivated by mutation, leading to femaleness. In 1989, Goodfellow discovered that a gene called SRY, located in the Y chromosome, was the master-regulatory gene responsible for sex determination. If you turn SRY on, the animal becomes anatomically and physiologically male; turn if off, the animal becomes anatomically and physiologically female. A women with Swyer syndrome is in fact a genetic male, but with the SRY gene (in his Y chromosome) turned off due to mutation. Gender Identity Gender identity is ones innermost concept of self as male, female, a blend of both or neither how individuals perceive themselves and what they call themselves. Ones gender identity can be the same or different from their sex assigned at birth. In the 1970s and 1980s, there were several cases of sexual reassignment the conversion of chromosomal male children into females through physiological and social conditioning each troubled and troubling in its own right. Some of them suffered hanuting pangs of anxiety, anger, dysphoria, and disorientation well into adulthood. Others had trouble reconciling her sense of herself as fundamentally female. They might had been converted into women physiologically, but genetically they were still male and exhibiting male behavior in a female body. So they had never really acquired the female gender identity. But to enable more profound aspects of gender determination and gender identity, SRY must act on dozens of targets turning them on and off, activating some genes and repressing others. These genes, in turn, integrate inputs from the self and environment form hormones, behaviors, exposures, social performance, cultural role-playing, and memory to engender gender. This geno-development cascade specifies gender identity. The existence of a transgender identity provides powerful evidence for this geno-development cascade. In an anatomical and physiological sex, sex identity is quite binary: just one gene governs sex identity, resulting in the striking anatomical and physiological dimorphism that we observe between males and females. But gender and gender identity are far from binary. Image a gene call it TFY that determines how the brain responds to SRY. One child might inherit a TGY gene variant that is highly resistant to the action of SRY on the brain, resulting in a body that is antomically male, but a brain that does not read or interpret that male signal. Such a brain might recognize itself as psychologically female; it might consider itself neither male or female, or image itself belonging to a third gender together. Sexual Orientation Social Behavior Sexual Orientation Sexual Orientation, or sexual identity, is how one thinks of oneself in terms of to whom one is romantically or sexually attracted the choice and preference of sexual partners. For a while in the 1950s and 1960s, the dominant theory among psychiatrists was that sexual preference was acquired, not in born. In the 1980s, J. Michael Bailey (1957- ), a professor of psychology, conducted a study of sexual orientation using twins. When he looked for concordance of gayness among twins, the results were striking. Of the fifty-six pairs of identical twins, 52 percent were both gay. Of the fifty-four pairs of nonidentical twins, 22 percent were both gay, lower than the fraction for identical twins, but still significantly higher than the estimate of 10 percent gay in the overall population. This study provided strong evidence that homosexuality is hereditary. In 1991, Dean Hamer (1951- ), a researcher at the National Caner Institute, came across Bailys twin study, and began his search for the gay gene. His studies led to the first molecular evidence for genes that influence human sexual orientation. His research groups first paper, published in Science in 1993, reported that the maternal but not paternal male relatives of gay men had increased rates of same-sex orientation, suggesting the possibility of inheritance from the maternal side of the families. A genetic linkage analysis of DNA samples from these families showed that gay brothers had an increased probability of sharing polymorphic markers on a small stretch of the X chromosome, called Xq28, providing statistically significant evidence for linkage to the sexual orientation phenotype. This finding was replicated in two other studies in the United States whereas a study in Canada found contrary results. After nearly a decade of intensive hunting, what geneticists have found is not a gay gene but a few gay locations. But none of the genes in these locations were experimentally linked to homo- or heterosexuality. The long-sought gay gene on Xq28 remains unknown. Social Behavior In 1979, Thomas Bouchard, a scientist in Minnesota, came across an account of twins who had been separated from birth and were reunited at age 30. For these brothers, genes were identical, but they grew up in different environments. By comparing separated-at-birth twins against twins brought up in the same family, Bouchard could untwist the effects of genes and environment. Bouchard began recruiting such twins for this study in 1979. By the late 1980s, he have assembled the worlds largest cohort of reared-apart and reared-together twins. This work became the Minnesota Study of Identical Twins Reared Apart (MISTRA), better known as the Minnesota Twins Project. In this study, he found out that shyness, political conservatism, dedication to hard work, orderliness, intimacy, extroversion, conformity, and a host of other social traits were largely heritable. In the early 1990s, Richard Ebstein, a geneticist in Israel, read Bouchards paper on the separate-at-birth twins. He wanted to identify the actual genes that determined variant forms of behavior. To find such genes, he would have to begin with a rigorous definition of the subtypes of personality that he wished to link to genes. He split out personality into four dimensions: novelty seeking impulsive vs cautious reward dependent warm vs attached risk avoidant anxious vs calm Persistent loyal vs fickle Ebstein was particularly intrigued by one of the subtypes novelty seeker, or neophiles. He began to collect a cohort of extreme neophiles using surveys, advertisements, and questionnaires. He then used molecular and genetic techniques to determine the genotypes within his cohort with a limited panel of genes. The most extreme novelty seekers, he discovered, had a disproportionate representation of one genetic determinant: a variant of dopamine-receptor gene called D4DR. His study was also corroborated by several other groups. D4DR is a human gene, located on chromosome 11. It is (so far) one of the only genes proven to be directly linked to a human personality trait. When the D4DR gene is mutated or elongated, studies have shown that the individual may be more interested in danger, excitement and thrill seeking. Epigenetics In the 1950s, Conrad Waddington (1905-75), an English embryologist, was fascinated in the early development of the fetus and interested in the mystery of how cells can start so simply and then develop specialized functions. He realized that a cells identity must be recorded in some manner beyond its genome for this to happen. He termed the phenomenon epigenetics. The word epigenetics literally means in addition to genes. Epigenetics is the reason why a skin cell looks different from a brain cell or a muscle cell. All three cells contain the same DNA, but their genes are expressed differently (turned on or off), which creates the different cell types. Today, epigenetics is the study of changes in organisms caused by modification of gene expression rather than alteration of the genetic code itself. It also refers to external modifications to DNA that turn genes on or off. These modifications do not change the DNA sequence, but instead, they affect how cells read genes. In response to cues from the environment, chemical marks are selectively added to certain genes and erased from others, modulating the expression of the genes in that cell alone. These marks are layered above the genes, leaving a permanent imprint on genes. This genetic memory would ensure that gene expression is locked into place in each cell, enabling each cell to acquire and fix an identity. Hongerwinter The Dutch famine of 1944-45, known as the Hongerwinter (Hunger winter) in Dutch, was a famine that took place in the German-occupied part of the Netherlands during the winter of 1944-45, near the end of World War II. A German blockade cut off food and fuel shipments from farm areas. Tens of thousands of men, women, and children died of malnourishment; millions survived. People who survived suffered from malnourishment and growth retardation. Children who survived the Hongerwinter also suffered chronic health issues: depression, anxiety, heart disease, gum disease, osteoporosis, and diabetes. In the 1980s, when the children born to women who were pregnant during the famine grew up, they too had higher rates of obesity and heart disease. In the 1990s, when the grandchildren of men and women exposed to the famine were studied, they too had higher rates of obesity and heart disease. The acute period of starvation had somehow altered genes not just in those directly exposed to the event; the message had been transmitted to their grandchildren. Some heritable factor, or factors, must have been imprinted into the genomes of the starving men and women and crossed at least two generations. The factor responsible for the memory could not be an alteration of the gene sequence: the people in the Dutch cohort would not have mutated their genes over the span of three generations. Here, an interaction between the gene and the environment had changed a phenotype (ie, the propensity for developing an illness). Something must have been stamped into the genome by virtue of exposure to the famine some permanent, heritable mark that was now being transmitted across generations. Gurdons Frog Cloning Experiment Our lives begin when a fertilized egg divides and forms new cells that, in turn, also divide. These cells are identical in the beginning, but become increasingly varied over time. It was long thought that a mature or specialized cell could not return to an immature state, but this has now been proved incorrect. In 1962, John Gurdon (1933- ) removed the nucleus of a fertilized egg cell from a frog and replaced it with the nucleus of a cell taken from a tadpoles intestine. This modified egg cell grew into a clone of the adult frog. Gurdons experiment had proved that factors present in an egg proteins and RNA could erase the marks of an adult cells genome and thereby reverse the fate of a cell and produce a tadpole from a frog cell. The idea was controversial at the time, but it later led directly to the cloning of Dolly the Sheep by Ian Wilmut in 1996, and to the subsequent discovery by Shinya Yamanaka that adult cells can be reprogrammed into stem cells for use in medicine. Chromosome Silencing In 1961, Mary Lyon (1925-2004), a former student of Waddington, found a viable example of an epigenetic change in an animal cell. In her biological study of chromosomes on mice, she found out that every paired chromosomes stained with chromosomal dyes looked identical except the two X chromosomes in females. One of the two X chromosomes in female mice was inevitably shrunken and condensed. The actual sequence of DNA was identical between both chromosomes, but the genes in the shrunken chromosome did not generate RNA, and therefore the entire chromosome was silent or inactivated. As nearly all female mammals have two X chromosomes, X-inactivation prevents them from having twice as many X chromosome gene products as males, who only possess a single copy of the X chromosome. How can a cell silence an entire chromosome? In the late 1970s, scientists discovered the epigenetic marker a group of methyl molecules attached to the DNA. Methyl tags were not the only epigenetic marker on genes. In 1996, working at Rockefeller University in New York, a biochemist named David Allis found yet another system of markers. Rather than stamping the marks directly on genes, this system placed its marks on proteins, called histones, that act as the packaging material for genes. Yamanakas Cell-fate Reversal Experiment Shinya Yamanaka (1962- ), a Japanese stem-cell biologies, was intrigued by Gurdons frog cloning experiment the idea that chemical marks attached to genes in a cell might function as a record of its cellular identity. What if he could erase these marks? Would the adult cell revert to an original state and turn into the cell of an embryo? In 2006, Yamanaka succeeded in identifying four genes within the genome of mice that proved decisive in this process. The introduction of these four genes into a mature skin cell of a mouse caused a small fraction of the cells to transform into something resembling an embryonic stem cell. This means that cells from someones skin can be made into stem cells which in turn can turn into any type of tissue in the body, meaning they can replace diseased or damaged tissue in patients. The Origin of Genes At Harvard, a biochemist named Jack Szostak (1952- ) has spent over two decades trying to discover the origin of DNA. In his laboratory, starting with chemical from the early Earth, the planet before life began, he was able to synthesize lifes basic building blocks lipids, nucleotides and amino acids, and assembled them into larger structures such as membranes, RNA molecules and peptides. Szostak believes that genes emerged out of this soup through a fortuitous meeting between these partners.

Is Vocational Education Working for High-Risk Populations? :: Educational education argumentative Essays

Is Vocational Education Working for High-Risk Populations? Any number of vocational education programs have been targeted to solve the education and employment problems of the nations high-risk populations--the dropout prone, persons with disabilities, educationally and economically disadvantaged persons, and so forth. Some have realized successful outcomes; others have not. This publication examines vocational educations role in the success of high-risk populations. Reducing the dropout rate is the most common outcome of vocational education for at-risk populations Although in-school retention is a goal of vocational education programs targeted to at-risk youth, it is not the most significant outcome. Data from the evaluation of a 3-year demonstration program funded by the Carl Perkins Vocational Education Act reflects a broader perspective on program success. In summarizing the outcomes of the 12 evaluated projects, Hayward and Tallmadge (1995) report that only 4 of the 12 showed a significant reduction in numbers of dropouts. The most successful outcome was the improved school performance of program participants. Ten of the 12 projects showed an increase in students grade point averages; 7 of the 12 showed a reduction in number of courses failed. In a review of literature regarding the impact of vocational education on student retention, Hill and Bishop (1993) acknowledge that, although there is some evidence that vocational education programs and approaches have succeeded in keeping students in school, other research showed that vocational education enhanced student retention only when it included other components such as work experience. Coordinating vocational education programs with programs that address the special conditions that place individuals at risk may provide better outcomes than programs solely devoted to vocational education. The Comprehensive Bilingual Vocational Education for Refugee Youth program is one example. Serving youth with limited English proficiency (LEP), this 2-year program provides students with a half-day of vocational training with bilingual assistance and 3 hours per week of life skills training. As part of the vocational component, bilingual members of the business community visit the classroom, talk with students about work in their fields, and take themto their places of work. In the first year of operation, the LEP dropout rate in the metropolitan area dropped from 35% to 0. In the two counties served by the program, the dropout rate went from 20% to 4% (ibid). Vocational programs raise the employment and earnings of at-risk youth and adults Not all programs achieve the goal of enhancing the employability of at-risk persons,.

Wake Up, Stark County! :: Sleeping Disorders Essays

Wake Up, Stark County! Approximately 40 million Americans suffer from chronic disorders of sleep and wakefulness, such as narcolepsy, sleep apnea, and insomnia. The majority of those affected remain undiagnosed and untreated. At the Doctors Hospital Center for Sleep Disorders, 1001 patients are regularly treated for some form of these disorders at the present time (Roman interview). Fewer than 5% of these patients are children and 65% are men over the age of 40. Dr. Frankie Roman, a Board Certified Sleep Specialist, operates this Center. It is the only one available to Stark County residents at this time. To adequately discuss these disorders, first we must provide a working definition of the individual conditions that the terms denote. Sleep apnea is a cessation of air exchange at the nose and mouth, lasting at least 10 seconds (Williams, pg. 48). Narcolepsy is a disorder of excessive sleepiness. This sleepiness is characterized by brief episodes of lapses into sleep that occur throughout the day, usually lasting less than an hour. Insomnia means an inability to sleep. There are many kinds of insomnia, some chemical, some emotional, and some psychological (Thorpy 104). In addition to the 40 million people with chronic sleep disorders, there are 20 to 30 million people who experience intermittent sleep-related problems. These may be due to demanding work schedules and/or various other lifestyle stress factors. The consequences of sleep disorders, sleep deprivation, and excessive sleepiness can be significant. They could even include morbidity. It has been estimated that, in 1990, sleep disorders and sleepiness cost the United States a minimum of $15.9 billion in direct costs alone (National Commission, vi). This estimate does not include the billions of dollars in indirect and related costs, such as those attributable to sleep-related disasters (e.g. Exxon Valdez grounding, motor vehicle accidents, and diminished productivity in the work place). Some sleep disorders are potentially fatal, while others are little more than an annoyance. Some are life-long, with effects on family members; others are brief and non-recurring. Falling asleep inappropriat ely can blot out a few minutes of television, or it can cause catastrophic damage to life and property. Patients are often thought to be lazy and can become socially isolated from friends and family. I am a victim of sleep disorders. I suffer from sleep apnea and narcolepsy. I am a regular patient at the Sleep Disorder Clinic at Doctors Hospital. Here, I am wired to various electrodes which protrude from my head and then am told to go to sleep naturally! My breathing and brain waves are monitored, and I am later informed of how many times a night I have ceased to breathe on my own.

Sylvia Plath: A Search for Self :: Biography Biographies Essays

Sylvia Plath: A Search for Self      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The collective body of Sylvia Plath's poetry demonstrates definitively her mastery of her craft. Plath has been criticized for her overtly autobiographical work and her suicidal pessimism, however, close study reveals that her poetry transcends categorization and has a voice uniquely her own. As Katha Pollit concluded in a 1982 Nation review, "by the time she came to write her last seventy or eighty poems, there was no other voice like hers on earth" (Wagner 1). In works such as "Lady Lazarus," "Daddy," and "Morning Song," Plath relates her own painfully experiences in the form of dramatic monologues using a persona who eventually triumphs over adversity by regaining the self that had been lost before the struggle of the poem.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   According to Plath, the narrator of "Lady Lazarus" has "the great and terrible gift of being reborn . . . she is the Phoenix, the libertarian spirit" (Wagner 71). In compact three-line stanzas, the speaker sardonically comments on her unique ability and its implications. Her tone demonstrates her boredom towards the attention paid to her by "the peanut-crunching crowd." Unlike the Biblical Lazarus who is called forth from the grave by Jesus, Lady Lazarus is able to resurrect herself and so avoids the polarities of God and Lucifer. Neither of these figures is able to exact punishment for the atrocities that man heaps on man, so the speaker transfigures herself by reducing her body to ashes and reviving her life through flame. As Leonard Sanazaro points out, "This willfulness to arise and devour humankind in the form of a self-fulfilled deity points up the impotence of the traditional concepts of good and evil" (Wagner 90) Lady Lazarus transcends these boundaries.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The imagery used throughout the poem is associated with the treatment of the Jews by the Nazis in concentration camps during World War II. Plath addresses the inhumanity of the situation, using such phrases as "A cake of soap,/A wedding ring,/A gold filling" to represent a human being. Plath also alludes to the medical experimentation that was practiced by the Nazi doctors. Plath has often been criticized for relating her hardships to that of the Jews. After all, she grew up in a relatively stable and affluent home and received an excellent education; her suffering was in her mind. Plath said specifically that her poems had come:

Mortgage

The American consumer has now gotten himself into trouble by simply living beyond his means. This is nothing new in America as only 2% of those who are set to retire at age 65, have enough in their savings and investments to have the same standard of living that they once knew when they were younger. (Saft 2007 pg. C3) Credit card debt is skyrocketing and people can see no light at the end of the tunnel except for filing bankruptcy. What has been in the news recently and has shown how careless the American consumer can be is the number of foreclosures from supreme mortgages have gone through the roof and is to the degree that the fall out will likely result, and has already resulted in, effecting other sectors in the United States economy. There has been reported some relief as the Federal Reserve, on September 18th, announced that interest rates would be cut. This is only a short term resolution and the  ¼ % that it will likely be cut, will not bring enough relief to the millions of Americans who bought a more expensive home than they could afford. (Stempel, 2007) The predatory practices of lenders across the country have added to this as well. Sub prime mortgages deal with mortgages that were given to people with less than perfect credit scores who do not have to show to the same extent, financial proof that they can afford to pay the loan that they are applying for in order to buy their dream house. The fall out has occurred and will continue to occur as millions of people are in danger of losing their homes. The existence of the sub prime mortgage is important to note as well. Even at a conservative interest rate, a 30 year fixed mortgage, a lender will make on average, close to $200,000 on a $100,000 loan. (Rudd, 2007) Those that have the money to lend, will make a great deal of money in their return. The demand is high for homes as it is an important aspect of the American dream to own a home. However, many Americans suffer from poor credit scores as a result of past bills which had not been paid or past loans which had not been honored. As a result, this hurts the individual’s credit score; the most important piece of information that will help a lender to decide if giving a loan to the individual will constitute a risk to the lender. The lender is in the business of lending money and does not want to be in the necessary position to repossess one’s home. An individual with a low credit score and who was not able to prove that they had the necessary income to support their monthly mortgage payment, was denied the loan. This was for the protection of the lender as well as the borrorrer. These were the self imposed rules with the lending industry followed. Now, things have changed. There is so much money to be made in the lending market when good loans are made, that lenders are now playing on the lust that Americans have to own a home. This is not a lust to just own a home, but rather to own the largest and grandest home possible. The individual will not correctly study his budget to see the amount of a mortgage which he would afford and thinks with his heart and not his wallet. Also, the existence adjustable rate mortgages of ARMS; mortgages which are advantageous to the individual when the interest rate is low but which will rise, sometimes exponentially when the Federal Reserve raises the interest rate in order to stabilize the economy. In recent months, the interest rate has increased and therefore, mortgages which commanded an $800 a month payment, can now easily exceed $1100, depending on the initial interest rate which the individual was able to secure. (Seiders 2007 pg. 3) As a result, those individuals who have figured too closely, their budget and never really were in the position to buy a $200,000 home, default on their loan. Two missed payments and the foreclosure process begins. Full payment of the missed months, along with interest and penalty rates is what is needed for the individual to become up to date on his loan. For millions of people this decade, that has never come to fruition and not only are their homes lost, their credit is ruined for the next 7-10 years to such an extent that even the most predatory lender would shy away from giving that individual a loan in the immediate future. Needless to say, this effects those individuals who have no lost their homes, to a dizzying degree. However, there are other effects to the different sectors of the economy and the employees of these branches of the American work force who themselves, are not having a problem paying their mortgage and who though that they would never personally be effected from the sub prime mortgage if they were only smart enough to stay away from such predatory lenders. Such is not the case as so much of our economy is interchangeable and depends upon the success of the other. The fallout from the sub prime mortgage details such interdependence. One way in which the fallout from the sub prime market has affected the economy is in the stock market. There have been a number of very large companies which had either been forced to lay off thousands of workers, or have simply filed for bankruptcy. On June 20, 2007, Merrill Lynch seized more than $800 million in assets from two famous hedge funds that were previously involved in sub prime loans. (Saft, 2007 pg 4)   Now, these funds are worthless on paper and their assets have now been depleted. American Home Mortgage Investment Corporation announced that it had suffered a billion dollar loss and that a proposed $4.9 billion deal with Radian Group, would no longer come to fruition. (* Myers, 2007) Also, just last month, Countrywide, the largest American lender, accounted that it was being forced to cut 12,000 jobs from its payroll as a result of the sub prime mortgage fall out. It was reported that a staggering 19% of the total number of loans fell under the sub prime category. (Myers, 2007) It should therefore be no surprise to Countrywide, as well as those who follow the mortgage industry, when they hear of such steep job cuts. This was one of the hardest blows to the American economy and effects the economy in three main areas. The first effect is the fact that 12,000 people lost their jobs. Some individuals, for example, John Bryne, had been employed at Countrywide for over twenty years and now has lost a job and many companies will see him as too old to be hired. â€Å"I do not know what I am going to do. I was planning to retire with Countrywide. I will try to start over and on my own. However, I do not know if I will be able to find people who I can trust to repay their loan. It is a tough situation.† (Saft, 2007 pg.4) 12,000 people, along with the others who worked for lenders who are now out of business, have suffered the same fate. This is the result of individuals who have taken out a loan that they never should have had in the first place. When a mortgage is foreclosed upon, it is not only the individual who losses. The lender looses tens of thousands of dollars, sometimes hundreds of thousands of dollars, on the life of the loan. Also, lenders who have what the Federal Reserve regards as too many defaulted loans, and that lender can be shut down and find themselves out of business. Another negative aspect to the loss of 12,000 jobs from Countrywide, as well as the other lost jobs in the lending institution is the effect that it has on the stock market. The stock market and the study of it is a very complex thing. Many times, a business can meet its quarter estimates and enjoy a steady profit; its P/E ratio is superior to others in that field and yet their stock price continues to struggle and millions of dollars in investor’s money, is lost. All of the above mentioned factors are important factors in deciding if this is a stock which one should invest in. However, the Dow, NASDAQ and S &P are indexes which, to some degree, is based upon speculation and perception. On July 19, 2007 the Dow hit a record high of 14,000. By August 15th, the Dow had fallen below 13,000 and as a result, billions of dollars was lost. (wwwcbsmarketwatch.com) Such a decrease has happened before but such is rare. â€Å"The current losses in the stock market cannot be considered a self imposed correction. It is a direct result from the mortgage crisis.† (Rudd, 2007) The news of the sub prime mortgage meltdown has resulted in the average investor taking out millions of dollars of his own money. When there is an extended period of high levels of selling, this will lead to a bear market in which an extended bear market will often times lead to a recession. The current American economy is not there yet and the news that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates will stem the tide of such things coming to reality. However, such negative news only hurts the economy as a whole and the major indexes can expect to take a major hit in the short as well as long term. This results in a depletion of billions of dollars of individuals’ hard earned money. A third way in which the sub prime mortgage fall out effects people who themselves are not in danger of defaulting on their loan, is the ways in which foreclosures affect the property values of the homes within a neighborhood. For many individuals, their home will be the most expensive investment that they will ever make in their lifetime. When home owners feel that their property values are decreasing, often times, this will increase the rapidity in which they will seek to move. A decrease of 10% or even 5%   in the individual’s property value is often times, enough of a stimuli to incite the individual to move. Those who cannot move or who cannot find a buyer for their homes, are stuck with the loss. How does this happen? There are many factors which appraisers take into effect when deciding a home’s value. One of the important factors is the % of vacant ( foreclosed)   homes in the neighborhood. Prospective new home buyers will be steered away from such neighborhoods as it is a sign of an economically depressed neighborhood and the possibility of their own home’s value increasing, is minimal. An average American will move at least 3 times in their life. That means, that there is a 66% chance that their home will be seen and used as an investment as well as a home in which to live. A home bought at $100,000 with even the remotest possibility of one day being valued at less than the purchase price, is often times enough of a reason not to buy that home and to generally steer clear of that neighborhood entirely or to rent for a longer period of time. This last aspect is detrimental to the city as the loss of property taxes hits the budget hard and impedes the services which the city is able to provide. The effect that the sub prime mortgage fall out has is mental as well as monetary. Many potential home buyers, those with superior credit, are simply postponing any purchases and is prompted to simply wait out the storm. â€Å"Showings are down, contracts written are down and sellers are just as backed away as buyers are. This from Lou Barnes, a partner in mortgage banking   with Boulder West Financial in Bouler, Colorado. Barnes continues to comment: â€Å"I think the psychological damage is worse than the financial damage which is already bad enough. Even for buyers who have plenty of cash can easily afford higher mortgage rates, the sudden change in the financing environment reduces the desire to buy a house unless you really have to.† (Donn 2007 pg. 3) This idea goes back to the concept that a home purchase is seen as an investment as much as a domicile. The self imposed prevention of potential buyers who have superior credit scores to buy homes, hurts the local economy and the businesses in the area. The negative effects of the housing fall out are intertwined, one depending upon the other. Another way the sub prime mortgage affects the economy is in the fallout. Sub prime mortgages, in a utopian world, would give individuals a second change at improving their credit scores and disallowing their credit mistakes of the past, from preventing them from one day buying a house. Many times, credit problems occur when an individual is in college. Generally, the maturity needed to fully appreciate the concepts of long term results to their immediate actions are void in their mindset. Money is tight and credit cards are readily available. As a result, many credit cards are charged to their limit until eventually the bill goes to collections and is reported to the credit bureau. Hopefully, that individual, upon graduating from college and being removed from the situation for a couple of years, matures to the degree that such occurrences would never again happen. However, without the existence of a sub prime mortgage, that individual would not be allowed to buy a home for years; until his or her credit score was improved to the new guidelines of a 660 FICO score from a previous 620 guideline. (Saft, 2007 pg. 2) Those who bought their home at the beginning of the year and who had less than perfect credit with incomes on the brink of the cut off point for their mortgage, could not have bought a home any later. The same young couple who goes to buy a house six months from now when the new guidelines are put in place in order to help avoid another fall out, will be forced to rent for another year or two before they can receive clearance for a loan. One of the most lasting as well as immediate effects upon the mortgage industry and those who depend upon it, are the lending practices. Economist Mark Doms states: â€Å"The sharp rise in delinquency rates on sub prime residential mortgages has raised concerns about credit underwriting practices and economic distress among borrowers and has drawn the attention of policy makers at the Fed and elsewhere.† (Doms 2007 pg. 3) This observation can equate to an effect upon possibly millions of Americans who were planning to buy a home in the next calendar year. This, as Mark Doms states, will have lasting effects. â€Å"Two of the potential channels through which house price appreciation may affect the sub prime delinquency rate that we suggest, are the incentive to protect home equity associated with recent appreciation in house prices on the demand for housing.† (Donn, 2007 pg. 3) Such observations will most likely come to fruition in the immediate future as it will be observed that the complete fall out from the sub prime mortgage crisis is yet to be fully realized. John Moutlon, former CEO of American   Mortgage Group stated the situation the best when he said: â€Å"It feels like this is just the tip of the iceberg and no one knows how it will shake out. We are trying to anticipate guideline changes.† (Myers, 2007) These are the real effects of the sub prime mortgage fallout; in the ways that it affects the average American man and woman. As an example, the story of two families highlights the real results of the mortgage meltdown. The real story of the sub prime mortgage is the effect that it has on the economy when these loans, on a wide scale, default and millions of individuals are affected. The Laird Family in Central Illinois was a new couple just starting out. Both parents worked but had modest jobs as the job market was not very strong in their area. The father, John was 25 and the mother Marie, was 23. They had a two year old child and were renting for the past 3 years together. Both had credit scores near 600 and their mortgage from a home that they were wanting to buy, would constitute 30% of their total monthly income. The price of the home was $140,000 with a $673 monthly mortgage payment. (Berry, 2007 pg C4) Their credit scores was not high and as a result, they were forced to pay a higher interest rate. However, they were sure that such a payment could be reached. They bought their home in May of 2007, just weeks before the mortgage meltdown. â€Å"I cant believe the timing. I am so fortunate. We both have poor credit scores and I doubt that we’d be able to secure a mortgage that was not sub prime† (Berry 2007 pg. C4) states John Laird. Their story was an American success story. However, those who came after John and who found themselves in similar situations, were not so lucky. In Oakland, California where the median home price is more than $400,000, homes are hard come by for those who are not very rich and who either have great credit or can put down a sizable down payment. This was not the case for Hector Esperanza. He earned a nice living at the age of 30 but the time when he first came to America as a legal citizen, were not so smooth. He ran up one unpaid bill after another and routinely had bill collectors calling him. In the last 3 years, he cleaned up his act and remained current on all of his bills. He then wants to buy a house for what is in comparison, a low purchase price of $228,000. His credit score was 615; right on the cusp of the old requirements but now, as a result of the mortgage meltdown in which lenders are now very nervous to approve such high risk loans, Hector was denied. His monthly payments would only constitute 25% of his monthly income. However, with the advent of stricter lending policies, Hector was seen as too much of a high risk. The sad state of affairs is that Hector is no longer the exception. The housing market is revolved around timing. No where has this become truer than in today’s current housing market. However, â€Å"prospective buyers are not interested in the appreciation in value that their homes could bring. Now, they are only wanting the chance to buy a home at all.† (Stempel, 2007) As a result, there have come from this current situation, some real and sobering numbers which affect millions of people. When viewing these statistics, it would behoove the lending industry to realize that this equates into many individuals who are severely affected. The forecast for the 2007 Housing market is bearish at best. It is expected that: there will be a decrease of 23% in single family home purchases. 22% decrease in the number of new homes being built and 44% of building companies reporting that their business has been affected in an adverse way and that 78% of the largest building companies have bee affected by the sub prime mortgage meltdown.   13% decline in the real Residential Fixed investment as well as a modest slippage in the real value of residential remodeling. (Christie, 2007) However, the full brunt of the sub prime mortgage meltdown, sadly, is yet to be realized. The worst may be on its way The current sub prime mortgage crisis is an example of how the few can ruin it for the many. Not everyone who has less than perfect credit would become a risk when buying a home. Everyone makes mistakes and those who have credit scores that are on the brink of the cut off, should be given the opportunity to own their own home. However, when lenders give $200,000 mortgage loans to individuals who have credit scores less than 550 and who clearly cannot afford the monthly payments, it ruins the entire housing market and hurts the potential and legitimate home buyers from owning a small piece of the American dream. Those people are now forced to rent. Less money is going to the city through taxes and a higher level of frustration is prevalent among millions of potential, first time home buyers who simply came to the table a few months too late. The sub prime market is relatively new and barely even existed just ten short years ago. The existence of the sub prime mortgage is a testament to the financial beliefs of the average American. Immediate gratification is what is popular and in buying the largest house, not because such extravagance is really needed but as a show of status is the motivation behind such purchases. The median home price in San Francisco is a staggering $1.1 million. (Donn 2007)   The buyers of these home can be divided up into two distinct groups;   those who can easily afford such prices and those who will go bankrupt in the attempt to do so. For the latter group, up until recently, have had no problem finding lenders who are hungry for their business. The fall out has come and personal responsibility, both for the individual as well as the lender has finally come full circle and forced the members of Congress, the construction industry, real estate agents and prospective buyers have been forced to take notice. As it was stated earlier, many feel as though this is the tip of the iceberg and future problems are only around the corner. The fact that the Federal reserve on September 19th, 2007, announced that they were going to cut interest rates provides some solace to the current mortgage crisis. Only time will tell if it will be too little and too late and what permanent changes will come out of this crisis in responsible lending practices. WORKS CITED Berry, J Predatory Loan Practice Lead to Mortgage Fallout. Chicago Tribune Business September 1, 2007 Christie, Les Subprime Blame Game www.cnnmoney.com Aired April 20, 2007 Doan, Mark. Home Prices and Subprime Mortgage Delinquencies. The Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco www.frbsf.org Downloaded September 18, 2007 Myers, J Subprime and Shockwaves Bloomberg TV Aired July 19, 2007 Robb, G. Fraud in Subprime Loans www.cbsmarketwatch.com Retrieved September 17, 2007 Saft, J. Subprime Mortgage rap tars Good Consumers, Economy.   www.reuters.com Downloaded September 17, 2007 Seiders, D. Fed   Surveys Subprime Mortgage Effects. www.nbnnews.com/eyeonecon/issues/2007 Downloaded September 15, 2007 Stempel, J. Countrywide Plunges on Downgrade. Bankrupcy feared. Reuters August 15, 2007    Fed Cuts Interest Rate http://www.wbbm780.com/pages/962665.php?contentType=4&contentId=931793 Downloaded Septe Mortgage Though experts recognize that the mortgage relief bill is not thorough, recognize that it remains the best latest attempt to address the current housing crisis facing the nation. A crisis that has continued to dominate the United States presidential debates as well as make it increasingly difficult for the homeowners to repay their loans. To understand the depth of the crisis and the latest efforts to correct the situation, it is important to look at what mortgagee is and how it operates. Mortgage is simply the use of ones property to be security to a house loan. A mortgage transfers the legal rights of ownership to the pledged property to the lender in case the payments are not made as per the agreed terms. Such a loan is made in the understanding that the security shall revert back to the owner once the terms of have been fulfilled. To most people, mortgage is associated with real estates. It is a contract that involves a number of legal participants among them landowners who is referred to as the mortgagee and the borrower who is the mortgagor. Another term that comes into play in the mention of mortgage is foreclosure. Foreclosure simply refers to a situation where a lender terminates the contract after the failure of the mortgagor to stand by the agreement terms. This is usually in the direction of a court order. In foreclosure, a bank or any other financial institution that extends credit facilities repossesses a property if the homeowner is unable to comply with mortgage requirements (Carmen & Rogoff 12). Currently there exists a subprime mortgage crisis in the United States. This is a crisis that can be evidenced by a liquidity problem existing in banks after a high default rate in mortgages leading to foreclosures. The current mortgage crisis is seen to have largely been caused by subprime lending which simply is the act of advancing loans to individuals whose creditworthiness is uncertain or wanting due to a low income. It is this subprime lending that contributed to the bulk of the total foreclosures in 2007, over 43%,despite the fact subprime lending were only 6.8% of all lending in that year (Stokes & Mechem). The current economic recession in the united state has tarnished Bush’s presidency with most tracing a link to the hefty spending in the war. Bush insists that the slump is a s result of the mortgage crisis. That aside, he has received immense criticism for how he has handled the crisis and for not coming up with any concrete plans to ease the situation. He is also accused of standing by the big corporations instead of helping the low income group deeply embroiled in the crisis. This is a result of his stand in opposing the mortgage relief bill, a bill that has recorded considerable gains in the house. Though the bill has its flaws, it is seen as a reprieve to millions of homeowners who continually face the risk of foreclosure. The mortgage relief bill is aimed at providing tax reprieve to homebuilders. The local governments will be funded to rehabilitate deserted homes. Those that oppose the bill claim it is wrong spirited and will set a bad precedence of forcing â€Å"one neighbor to pay for the mistakes of another† (Anderson) Bush is opposed to the bill referring to it as a â€Å"bail out†. Some Republicans see it as forcing the 95% of homeowners that did it right to pay for the 5% that got it wrong. It is important to note though that the bill will pave way for a possible road to recovery and will go along way in preventing a further economic slump. Economists warn that if the situation is not arrested in time, it would degenerate to the worst debacle for the housing and the banking industries. It is apparent that the nation is reeling from the effect of a mortgage crisis that has been caused by increase in foreclosures as a result of subprime lending. Though the government is yet to come up with a comprehensive plan to arrest the situation, the mortgage relief act is seen as a step towards the right direction and might go a long way in easing the pressure off the homeowners and builders through a tax break. Works Cited Aleis Stokes &  John Mechem. Delinquencies and Foreclosures Increase in Latest MBA National Delinquency Survey. Mortgage Bankers Association, 12/6/2007. Retrieved on 13th May 2008 from http://www.mbaa.org/NewsandMedia/PressCenter/58758.htm Scott Anderson. Bush administration opposes Democrats' mortgage relief bill. CNN.com Edition. Sat April 26, 2008. Retrieved on 13th May 2008 from http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/04/26/house.mortgage/ Carmen M. Reinhart and Kenneth S. Rogoff . Is the 2007 U.S. Sub-Prime Financial Crisis So Different? An International Historical Comparison.. Analysis of Harvard economists. February 5, 2008, 12 ; ;