Modern Information Technology Impacts Our Everyday Lives Essay Example for Free

Modern Information Technology Impacts Our Everyday Lives Essay Over the past 20 years, the world as we know has changed drastically. We have moved from a world that was bound by wires and copper cabling to a world that offers any bit of information you want with the touch of a glass screen from a device that fits in your pockets. In this same period of time, shopping used to involve planning a trip to a brick and motor store and hope they had the product you were looking for, and at the price you wanted to pay. If you lived in a small market, you didn’t have the choices to comparison shop other stores. In today’s age, a consumer can shop from the comfort of their home, and find exactly the right product at exactly the right price. With a click of a mouse and a charge of a credit card, the product will be rushed to the consumer’s house with little to no effort for them. Large retailers like Amazon.com can have a product delivered to a consumer by as early as the next day! This type of convenience has changed our daily ways in many ways, both positive and negative. For example, people can communicate with each other miles apart from their computers and smart phones via email and texting. While some may say this is good thing that allowing distant relatives and friends quick and simple communication without worrying about distance, others would say that email and texting simply takes a lot of the personal touch from the conversation. With retailers moving their sales online, some people believe that the personal touch of being able to talk to someone directly about the product may detract from the experience. Positive Impacts of Modern Technology We should begin looking at the positive impacts that this new technology has on our daily lives. Technology is evolving very quickly, and sometimes consumers have a hard time keeping up with the latest trends, but the impacts are made every day to help improve our lives. Whether we are using computers to communicate by video conferencing with friends and family in another country, or ordering the latest Harry Potter book to be instantly delivered to our Kindles, these technologies are enriching our lives. As retailers move to the web, consumers are able to comparison shop many different sellers with the click of a mouse. There are also dedicated websites out there that allow a consumer to instantly search for a product from hundreds of sellers, and then find the one that has the lowest price and best shipping. On top of this, the internet provides a way for consumers to research the products they are buying. We can look up reviews from other buyers to see if the product lives up to manufacturers claims. When a consumer decides what and where they will buy, they can have the product whisked away from the distribution center and be delivered on their doorstep by the end of the next day, all from the computer of their home. With the massive explosion of social media sites, people are able to find and communicate with their long lost friends and family all from a central location. We can share photos, send messages, and chat in real time with our connections. Although the entertainment industry has been slow to adopt the new technologies in fear of losing money to â€Å"pirates†, we have seen a huge growth of online video. Consumers are able to find and watch their favorite shows whenever and wherever they like. Television sets are now shipping with built in internet connectivity to allow purchasers to access the internet to watch videos and share photos with one another. Companies like Netflix and Hulu have embraced online streaming and are offering thousands of hours of online video for a very low monthly subscription. These services are not limited to just televisions either. Computers, smart phones, and tablets are all easily able to access this same content for on-the-go watching. Online gaming has become huge in the past few years as well. People can play against each other in massive online role playing games such as World of Warcraft, and even console makers such as Microsoft and Sony have enabled their gaming consoles for online play. This brings the world together as a playing field and we are no longer constrained by our living room when it comes to finding new opponents. With the help of Google, people are now able to research topics in record time. With a few keystrokes, users are able to find information on any topic under the sun. Online search engines allow us to research the world’s libraries and other research facilities. We are also able to scour the web for information. This makes student homework much simpler and faster, and allows them to learn more information quicker. Data organization has also become a simpler task thanks to modern technology. Companies can store their entire repository of data onto a simple database server. They can query this server for any bit of information they need within a few seconds. Not only beneficial for companies, home users are able to store their personal documents and photos securely on their PC’s as well as in an off-site â€Å"cloud† and not have any fear of losing this information when a natural disaster occurs. Negative Impacts of Modern Technology While there are many positive impacts on today’s society, there are also many negatives that are introduces as well. Many would argue that there are jobs being lost because of this new technology. Automated and robotic systems have taken the place of humans in the work force. With retailers moving their sales operations online, they no longer need the support staff for their brick and motor stores. Many stores are not able to keep up with the low prices from the mega-retailers online, so they are forced to close down. With the influx of social media as our main communication medium, some think that we have lost the personal touch of spending time with our close friends and family in favor of sitting behind our computers online. People that are only using social media as their main form of communication could lose the ability to interact physically with one another. The many distractions of email notifications and incoming text messages have also become a detractor. People no longer consider it rude to stop in the middle of a conversation to respond to a text message that has just come in to their phone. This could lead to low levels of concentration. At the same time, malicious people have found easy ways to target those that are online. With the vast amount of spam email and harmful virus spreading around the world, more and more people are becoming susceptible to attack. Another negative impact is the illegal use of technology for gambling and other addicting habits. Online gambling sites attract millions of people per day and can completely consume those with weak will power, leading to distressed families and financial means. Underground websites also harbor criminalist activities as well. Pornography and child pornography are trafficked daily on the internet, and the sheer magnitude of the web makes it hard for authorities to track down and eliminate. There are even websites such as TheSilkRoad that sell illegal drugs in the same fashion as Amazon sells normal goods! In Summary Although we cannot stop the negative effects from this new technology, we shouldn’t fear it. Learning to recognize the potential positive impacts this new technology can bring to our lives while at the same time recognizing the potential threats we will be better able to adapt to them and take advantages and enrichments they bring to our daily lives.

Aplastic Anemia Essay Example for Free

Aplastic Anemia Essay Aplasitc anemia is a very rare blood disorder. Sometimes, it is connected with leukemia; it could be a result from chemotherapy given to leukemia patients. In aplastic anemia, the bone marrow does not make the necessary blood cells needed in the blood; however, leukemia is when the blood cells are deformed and not working properly. Leukemia is a cancer where as aplastic anemia is not. Chemotherapy treatment for cancer can lead to the secondary condition of aplastic anemia that may cause slowing down of producing blood cells. What are the anatomical and physiological symptoms and causes for aplastic anemia? What is the diagnosis and what treatments are available for aplastic anemia? One symptom is fatigue from being anemic. Anemia is when the red blood cells are low in the blood. The red blood cells carry the oxygen from your lungs to all parts of the body (Aplastic Anemia and MDS International Foundation, Inc. ). This will cause fatigue when the body does not get enough oxygen. There is a little more than just low red blood count in cells in aplastic anemia. It is when the body doesn’t produce all three different blood cells that the body has: white blood cells, red blood cells, and the platelets termed pancytopenia (Wikipedia). In aplastic anemia, it is when the bone marrow stops producing or slows down in producing these new blood cells. The white ones or leukocytes are to fight infections in the body by attacking and killing bacteria and viruses (Aplastic Anemia and MDS International Foundation, Inc. ), so with out them patients easily catch viruses. A low white blood cell count is called neutropenia (Aplastic Anemia and MDS International Foundation, Inc. . The other is the platelets; they are for blood clots. A low platelet count is called thrombocytopenia (Aplastic Anemia and MDS International Foundation, Inc. ). A low platelet count leads to another symptom that would be uncontrolled bleeding because the body does not have the platelets to stop the bleeding. You can also causes bruising and petechiae (Wikipedia). Some of the other symptoms include shortness of breath, headache, pallor and, ultimately tachycardia and heart failure (Lippincott 508). Bone tenderness should not be present (Mc Phee 454). The cause for aplastic anemia develops when the bone marrow is damaged or in some cases is unknown. About 75 out of 100 cases of acquired aplastic anemia are idiopathic (Aplastic Anemia MDS International Foundation, Inc. ). This means they have no known cause. Sometimes, the case can be from radiation and chemotherapy treatment used for cancer. This can destroy the healthy cells in the bone marrow leading to the secondary condition. Some other causes for secondary condition of aplastic anemia are toxic chemicals and certain drugs, such as the chemical benzene that is found in gasoline, or with the use of certain drugs, including chloramphenicol[-0], carbamazepine[-1], felbamate[-2], phenytoin[-3], quinine[-4], and phenylbutazone[-5] (Wikipedia). Chloramphenicol treatment is followed by aplasia in less than 1 in 40,000 treatment courses, and carbamazepine aplasia is even more rare (Wikipedia). The medication for rheumatoid arthritis is connected to ones getting aplastic anemia; this would be called also a secondary condition when aplastic anemia appears. Likewise Lupus, an autoimmune disorder, can attack the healthy stem cells. This would cause the slowing down or stopping of making the blood cells the body needs. The rest may result from immunologic factors (unconfirmed), severe disease (especially hepatitis), viral infection (especially children), or preleukemic and neoplastic infiltration of bone marrow (Lippincott 397). Therefore, to confirm a diagnosis for aplastic anemia they first take a blood sample to see if the blood count is low. If that shows up low in all the blood cells, the next step is to take a bone marrow sample or biopsy. The bone marrow is usually taken from the large hip bone by a needle. The sample is looked at in a microscope to rule out leukemia, which the blood cells would look abnormal and would be the reason the blood cells are not working properly. However, aplastic anemia would show very little red and white blood cells in the blood stream. Some options of treatment given to patients are medications, bone marrow transplant, and blood transfusion (MayoClinic). Just recently, they have stem cell transplants. The medications are immunosuppressive combine with cyclosporine. Maybe one of the causes is the immune system is attacking its own good blood cells, and these drugs will slow down the process. This medication treatment is usually given until the patient can get a stem cell transplant. The other medication can be used with the immunosuppressive is the growth factor. The new genetically engineered growth factor drugs help with making new white blood cells. That is really important, since the body makes a blood cell that only last for awhile, so the body is always generating new blood cells. However, aplastic anemia patients body for some reason stops this process. The other medicines used are antibiotics either to help prevent infections or already established infection, since the immune system is weak and would not be unable to fight of a common cold. Most likely the doctor will administer them before an infection appears, so that the patient will not get an infection. Those are the medications used and if the condition doesn’t improve, the patient would await for a bone marrow transplant. The bone marrow transplant might have been the first choice, which the medication is administered until the patient can find a match donor. The bone marrow transplant is usually a successful treatment to cure aplastic anemia in people under 55 years old (Aplastic Anemia and MDS International Foundation, Inc. ). Bone marrow transplantation from a related, matched donor can treat aplastic anemia – without recurrence- in about four out of five cases (MayoClinic). Up to half the people with matched, but unrelated, donors can expect to have successful bone marrow transplants (MayoClinic). There’s a chance that your body may reject the transplant, leading to life-threatening complications (MayoClinic). The bone marrow transplant uses a matched blood type. When found, the donor will have surgically removed some of his or her healthy bone marrow. It is then injected intravenously in the blood to the patient. The donated bone marrow will collect to the patient’s bone marrow and help with making new blood cells; it may take two to four weeks to show the new blood cells are producing. Before they even give the aplastic patient the donated marrow, they give them chemo to get rid of the diseased marrow, and will also be administered drugs to help prevent rejection of the bone marrow. Another precaution a doctor may limit the number of blood transfusions before the operation to avoid complications. Technology is advancing that they can use stem cells now instead of bone marrow transplant. The new stem cell transplant is taken from the bone marrow, umbilical cord, or the blood stream of the donor. They just get the stem cell from either of those places, and again like the bone marrow transplant, place the stem cell into the blood stream of the patient. The patient will be given chemo before the procedure as in the bone marrow transplant. This time the complication of the new stem cells will create an immune system that attacks the body of the donor, instead of the body rejecting as in the bone marrow transplant. If this does occur, they also have drugs that will help combat this. The treatment of blood transfusion is not usually used because it is a treatment for fatigue. Fatigue is not a medical emergency. First, use rest to see if it alleviates the symptom. White blood cells only last a day because that is how long they last in the body. That is why the bone marrow is important in making the new cells the body needs. The other complication that blood transfusions may cause is hemorrhaging. For long term recovery, they usually need other treatment along with this procedure. Aplastic anemia is a very rare disease and affects very few people. It is not contagious. It is more commonly diagnosed in young adults and children. It can affect any age group anytime in life and the illness might be brief, also it can come on suddenly or slowly. The symptoms vary depending on the blood cells that they are low in. The patient could have a slight case that might just be observed or to a severe case that needs treatment. A doctor should be the one to make the diagnoses and treatments. Doctors estimate that there are about 900 new cases of aplastic anemia diagnosed in the United States each year (Aplastic Anemia MDS International Foundation, Inc. . Patients need to be extra careful not to get an infection because the body having low white blood cell count would have a hard time combating against viruses. Steps are also taken to prevent hemorrhage: avoiding parenteral injections, suggesting the use of an electric razor, humidifying oxygen to prevent dry mucous membranes, and promoting regular bowel movement (Venes 116). Mortality for aplastic anemias with severe pancytopenia is 80% to 90% (Lippincott 507). In advancing technology today, why not consider to be a bone marrow donor that could save lives of others.

Hong Kong Education Essay Example for Free

Hong Kong Education Essay The pre-school education voucher scheme was launched by the government of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in September 2007. The scheme was meant to introduce reforms in education in efforts to promote good early childhood education as the foundation for a child’s lifelong learning (Education Department, 2000). Based on this scheme, every parent who has a child aged between 3 and 6 years should be given a voucher worth $13,000 every year (HKU Faculty of Education, 2008). Out of the $13,000, $10,000 can be used by the parents to pay tuition fees in the kindergartens. The remaining $ 3000 should then be used for the professional development of the teachers in pre-school institutions. The pre-school education voucher should be used under certain conditions. These conditions are, that the voucher should not be used for generating profit, pre-school institutions such as kindergartens must make sure their accounts are open for inspection, the school must attain the set Education Bureau benchmarks within 5 years based on the pre-school quality of education, and tuition fees need to be under $24,000 for half day and $42,000 for full day programs per student, per annum. Due to the restrictions that accompany the pre-school education voucher scheme in Hong Kong, stakeholders in the education sector have shown concern for the impact of the imposed restrictions. This has resulted to a debate that has involved the government and the stakeholders. Since its introduction in the 2007/2008 years, the voucher scheme has been very important for parents with children attending kindergartens. The scheme has provided parents with direct fee subsidy and this has eased their financial burden. It is estimated that a total of 820 kindergartens which represents 85 per cent of the total number of kindergartens in Hong Kong have joined the scheme. In addition, 117,000 pupils are enjoying the benefits from the pre-school education voucher scheme fee subsidy. Since 1997, pre-school institutions in Hong Kong experienced reforms that considered internal effectiveness in schools to be important (Vickers, 2003). According to the Hong Kong government, the implementation of the voucher scheme is an indication of its commitment and support to pre-school education. In addition, the schemes are a positive response to the demands that have been made by the kindergarten principals and teachers. This has become possible through the financial support that the schemes provide for the professional development of the teachers and the principals. It is very important to note that the primary objective of the pre-school education voucher scheme in Hong Kong is to provide parents with direct fee subsidy. It is estimated that over 80 percent of the total number of kindergarten teachers have managed to obtain the Certificate of Early Childhood Education(C (ECE)). Some teachers have enrolled in the courses or have managed to obtain qualifications equivalent to (C (ECE)). To evaluate whether the voucher scheme has been successful in achieving its objectives, the Education Bureau (EDB) in Hong Kong continues to conduct Quality Review studies. By May 2009, the Education Bureau is estimated to have conducted survey on more than 320 kindergartens. The government of Hong Kong acknowledges that pre school teachers experience pressure at work and they need to develop in their profession. The scheme is considered to be one of the ways through which the teachers’ professional development can be promoted. Impact of the Pre-school education voucher scheme on teacher’s professional development Teachers at pre-school institutions have shown their full commitment and dedication to education in Hong Kong . One of the ways through which the pre-school education voucher scheme has impacted positively on the teacher’s professional development is by trying to reduce the workload of the teachers and the principals. Since one of the primary objectives of the scheme is to promote professional development of the teachers, the Education Bureau has continued to enhance communication between the school administration, teachers and other stakeholders in the sector (Andrew, 2008). This has resulted to efficient and continuous implementation of programs that are aimed at improving the teachers’ professional development. The quality review mechanism that has been adopted by the Education Bureau ensures that school self evaluation is done to encourage continuous improvement in education and the teachers professional development. Teachers have been concerned about the pressure at work that results from the quality review done by the Education Bureau as well as the work load at school. However, the quality reviews that are supported due to the implementation of the pre-school education voucher scheme have promoted professional collaboration between teachers. Pre-school education in Hong Kong has for a long time been provided by the private sector and non-profit making institutions. This demands that all pre-school institutions such as kindergartens to be well placed in a manner that the market forces are used to determine the teachers’ salaries at discretion. The launch of the pre-school voucher schemes has increased financial resources for the kindergartens and schools’ management activities (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, 2007). In addition, these resources have been used to finance efforts that aim at providing a working environment that attracts and retains qualified and well performing teachers. The financial resources injected by the voucher scheme have also been very vital in facilitating the payment of good salaries to the teachers. These benefits have acted as a motivation for the teachers to improve their skills and abilities hence their professional development (The Education Bureau, 2009). The Hong Kong government has reaffirmed its commitment in promoting high quality education at the pre-school level by encouraging schools or kindergartens to provide the teachers with qualification allowances. Research studies that have been conducted to determine the impact of pre-school voucher schemes in Hong Kong show that over 52 per cent of parents, principals and teachers agree that the scheme is a fair policy that promotes excellence in early childhood education. The teachers satisfaction with the scheme has been due to the opportunities the schemes have offered to them to improve their professional skills. Teachers consider the voucher scheme to have a positive influence on the schools and their staff. By improving the quality of education offered at the kindergarten, it has become necessary for teachers qualifications to be improved. This has played an important role in the teachers’ professional development. A large number of parents with children in pre-school institutions assert that the schemes have promoted the qualifications of the teachers as well as the improvement made on the school facilities. The schemes have encouraged teachers to pursue higher education or to undertake more education courses. At the pre-school level, extra curricular activities are very critical for children development and learning (Sweeting, 1990). Teachers compliment learning in class by extra curriculum activities. By participating in the coordination and implementation of extra curricular programs in school, the teachers’ ability to lead and teach is improved. The voucher scheme has increased financial resources to be spent for the extra curricular activities in school. By being involved in the activities, the teachers’ professional ability to use the activities in educating the children is improved. By September 2008, about 30% of teachers at the pre-school level had enrolled and attained good qualifications after enrolling for (C (ECE)) courses which are recommended and supported by the Education Bureau. The pre-school principals who are also teachers have had an opportunity to pursue higher education . For example, about 61 per cent or a large number of principals have been enrolled to undertake the Bachelor of Education in Early Childhood Education (B Ed (ECE). A program to certify the qualification of the principals were put into place in January 2008 . By March 2009, about 300 principals who served in the pre-schools had taken a certification course. For continuous professional development in the teachers, many kindergartens have adopted teacher development subsidy (TDC) to offer the teachers’ school based training programs. The pre-school education voucher scheme provides support services that are offered to develop language skills, cognitive abilities and physical development in children. Teachers gain from this by being engaged in creating a good learning environment, proper children learning, portfolio planning as well as curriculum planning and organization. Being engaged in these activities has been vital in improving the professional skills of the teachers when it comes to planning for good learning at school (Bray and Koo, 2005). The Hong Kong Education Bureau participates in promoting the teachers professional development under the voucher scheme by commissioning a professional training course for their principals. By improving the principals’ leadership and management skills, the teachers are able to get good guidance and effective leadership that relate to the teacher’s work (Ranson, 2003). The principal training course is characterized by an offshore programme and provides an on-spot consultative visit to the principal who participates in the course. About 130 principals are estimated to join the training programme. The principals have given positive feedback about the benefits of the programmes. To support the implementation of the pre-school curriculum revised guide, the Education Bureau organizes professional development programmes which relate to school based curriculum knowledge, leadership, curriculum management and pedagogical knowledge in various areas of learning. This effort has promoted the professional development of the teachers through capacity building. Transparency in pre-school institutions has been promoted by the requirements set by the Education Bureau when it comes to the management of the financial resources . The resources provided by the scheme promote the smooth running of the schools, good remuneration for the teachers and provide a good learning environment. These have gone a long way to increase accountability of the principals and the teachers and this has motivated teachers to embrace good values that are important in professional development. Some of the questions that have been raised about pre-school voucher schemes in Hong Kong is whether the schemes can minimize the overall work pressure on the teachers and improve the staff ratio. The pre –school education voucher schemes have promoted professional upgrading for both the principals and the teachers. For those who serve at PEVs-NPM-KGs, a teacher development subsidy is provided in each voucher. The subsidy is utilized for teacher training and development courses. Furthermore, the teachers and the principals who serve in non PEVs-NMP-KGs can claim a reimbursement from the Education Bureau to cater for up to 50 percent of the fees for a degree or diploma course that has been approved in early childhood education. By the year 2011/2012, all teachers serving at pre-school level are expected to have obtained a certificate in Early Childhood Education (LegCo panel on education, 2009). This together with the demand by the scheme that all kindergarten principals who are appointed from 2009 to have a BEd (ECE) have encouraged teachers to pursue higher education. In addition, the requirement for principals to have a one year post qualification experience and a certification course has encouraged principals and teachers to get engaged in professional development activities and programs. All kindergartens under the scheme have put into place measures that ensure there is continuous professional development by providing school based training programmes under the teacher development subsidy program. Areas of school work that are covered include children’s’ development, learning and teaching, management and organization, and children and school culture support. The quality reviews carried out by the Education Bureau assists the teachers to invest their energy and time in professional development as a way of promoting sustainable school improvement. For example, local non-profit making schools starting 2012-2013 will be able to redeem the education voucher if they are able to meet the prescribed standards of the Quality Review framework (Education Department, 2007). The requirements specified in the Education ordinance (Cap 279) ensures that teachers’ professional development can occur when they meet the set educational standards. The first batch pf 130 Quality Review planned visits began in the 2007-2008 school year (Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, 2008b) and an increase in ratio of graduate teachers in 2008/2009 has raised the professional standards and status of the teachers. The Quality Review Framework promotes transparency and accountability in schools which promotes a culture that is good for professional development of teachers. The Hong Kong government is committed and dedicated to the improvements made in education and the professional development of teachers. The development and implementation of the Pre-school Education Voucher Scheme in Hong Kong is one of the ways through which the government has managed to improve the quality of education and to promote professional development in teachers and principals. High quality education at the pre-school level can be attributed to the pre-school education voucher scheme, classroom inspection and quality reviews in schools. In conclusion, the pre-school education voucher scheme has been promoted through the 2007/08 school year Training Activity, Teacher Development plan for 2008/09 school year, Four-year Teacher Development plan and the professional upgrading of Kindergarten principals and teachers.

Benefits of Sports Essay Example for Free

Benefits of Sports Essay Sports serve as an excellent physical exercise. Those who play sports have a more positive body image than those who do not. Sports often involve physical activities like running, jumping, stretching and moving about which turn out to be a good body workout. Playing sports is energy put to good use. Engaging in sports since an early age strengthens your bones and muscles and tones your body. It helps you increase your stamina and endurance. Sports that involve jumping and stretching help increase height; for example basketball. Games that involve running, kicking or throwing a ball help strengthen the arms and legs; for example soccer and cricket. Swimming provides a full body workout. Thus sports provide the body with complete exercise and engaging in sports directly translates into overall fitness. Research shows that sports improve Math skills in children. Sports that involve aiming and hitting skills, for example, tennis, badminton, baseball and cricket help them increase focus. They help develop leadership qualities and foster team spirit in kids. They involve competition; they involve winning and losing. This exposes children to both aspects of life, successes and failures. Sports build a competitive spirit in children and teach them to be participative irrespective of whether the result is victory or defeat. Playing sports teaches them to accept both successes and failures with a positive spirit. Sports teach you to think with a cool head. The most important benefit of sports is the sportsman spirit they inculcate. Sports help you become more sporting, more positive and stronger. Playing sports is very beneficial for the development of social skills. Sports teach you to interact with people, communicate with them and collaborate as a team. Sports foster collective thinking and harness your planning and delegation skills too. Sports build confidence. Winning a game gives you a sense of accomplishment, which boosts your confidence further. Playing sports involves directed thinking. It requires you to strategize. You need to devise ways to score goals, runs or earn points, as the case may be. You need to devise strategies to win, you need to decide whether to take an offensive stand or a defensive one. You need to judge your opponents strategy and modify yours accordingly. This definitely involves clever thinking, which sports encourage. Studies show that kids who play sports regularly fare well in academics and do well in school. Sports make you happy. I know anyone would agree with this. Jumping about, running around, racing to get ahead, hitting, throwing, bouncing, kicking (the ball, I mean! ), shouting, clapping, cheering, falling and standing up again all a part of playing sports. And there is no match to the happiness this brings. They give you the high by increasing the production of endorphins in the brain. In other words, sports are a form of exercise which generates happiness molecules in your body, thus restoring your mental health. Playing sports, you cant be sad. In fact, they bust the sorrow and the stress. Sports generate a positive energy in you, around you. When sports are played at the state or national level, they increase the players sense of belonging to their community or country. International sports events foster patriotism and a feeling of oneness among the team members of a country. Playing sports at these levels opens many employment avenues for not only sportsmen and women but also people who join tournaments as volunteers, cheerleaders or in the capacity of sports doctors and physical therapists. As developments are undertaken in cities hosting sports events, sports can lead to urbanization of rural areas. Many cities have started becoming hubs for sports tourism. Sports parks are being developed in many tourist destinations. It is the increasing inclination for playing sports which is responsible for such developments. Playing sports reduces several health risks. As sports serve as an excellent form of exercise, it wont come as a surprise that they offer health benefits like lowering blood pressure, maintaining blood sugar and cholesterol levels and reducing other health risks. Yes, if you are playing a sport regularly, you are at a lesser risk of developing diabetes or heart diseases. Playing sports reduces the risk of hypertension and several other stress-related disorders. Research shows that people who play sports regularly can deal with stresses and strains in a better way. Those who engage in sports activities are less prone to depression, anxiety and other psychological disorders. Physical Health Benefits The fact is quite evident that playing any sport makes a person energetic. Team sports, at times, benefit more than solo ones because a person is always happy to play them with ten other people having a similar way of thinking. A team sport keeps health problems at bay. They provide you with the necessary exercise and endurance to maintain a healthy body. It keeps your body in shape and saves you from problems such as obesity, high blood pressure, heart diseases and weak bones. Women should specially take active part in team sports as it keeps their monthly cycles regulated and prevents them from all the gynecological problems. Research reveals that 60% of the women who play team sports are prevented from breast cancer. On the other hand, kids in a growing age get used to torn knees and injuries and thus do not become susceptible to it. It helps them develop strong muscles and a good physique. People who are above the age of 55 years should also actively participate in team sports. It keeps them fit when it is most needed. Social Benefits As Aristotle says, Man is a social animal, it is clear that a person needs a company of other people one day or the other. He cannot survive alone. Team sports help the man to become socially interactive. The more he communicates, the more he comprehends. The basic quality of understanding each other develops when a person begins to talk and listen. Team sports help to construct better friendships. Often, it is observed that a team which plays together, stays together! The team spends a lot of time discussing new ideas, opinions and methods with each other. This makes them bond well and add to the team spirit. Moral and Emotional Benefits Every individual has an ego that is hidden inside him and which pops up as a devil most of the time! One of the best things about playing a team sport is that it kills the ego and converts it into self respect. It is said that, while talking is very important, listening is even more important when you belong to a group. Team sports help develop the quality of listening to each other. We must agree to the fact that speech is silver but silence is golden! On the other hand, team sports build a good self-esteem in individuals. It helps you overcome your fears and mental blockages. It gives you the freedom to experiment and express. It is proven that children who play team sports are healthier and happier. They overcome their complexes with the help of the sport they play. Apart from this, leadership, support and acceptance are three such disciplines everyone needs to imbibe. Team sports make you a good leader. They teach you that a leader is not the boss but a considerate person who takes into account each persons say. They also teach you to accept failures and victory in the same spirit. Children, in the growing age, tend to believe that participation is far more important than victory. The knowledge that you gain, the values that you learn from your mistakes make you a better citizen and a humble individual. They keep you grounded. Read more at Buzzle: http://www. buzzle. com/articles/benefits-of-team-sports. html Sports boost self-esteem. Watching your hard work pay off and achieving your dreams brings about tons of self-confidence. If you can achieve something in a sport or with a fitness goal, then you know you can achieve any other goal you set. This is a very rewarding and exiting process. Playing a sport cuts down on pressure and stress. Exercising is a natural way to loosen up and let go of stress. Also, you will most likely make many new friends on the team who can be there for you as a support system. When you find you are having a lot of stress, you can call up team mates and head to the gym to talk it out and play it out.

The Nurture And Nature Views Education Essay

The Nurture And Nature Views Education Essay As a matter of fact, the nature/nurture debate has dominated the thoughts of researchers for a long time as people have been trying to find out the origin of intelligence. Bee believed that this question could possibly be among the oldest theories debated in psychology. The nurture view holds that human mind was born without any knowledge. This view is supported by empiricists, and one of the major tenants of empiricists is John Locke, a seventeenth English philosopher, who thought that humans are born with a tabula rasa, or a blank slate, and that knowledge is learnt and gained through experience.   In the 19th century, Hermann von Helmhotz believed that the raw data of sensation were perpetually subject to judgements based on experience. (Gigerenzer, 63) His research was that there is a simple inverse relationship between distance and retinal image size. (Gleitman, 249). In He concluded that it is through experience which we gain the ability to understand our visual perceptions. Empiricism was adopted by educationalists. Jean Piaget, a Swiss psychologist examined physical knowledge in infancy using some experiments, and concluded that children under 18 months of age had no knowledge of physical laws of motion because they looked for hidden objects in places that were not possible. Further, John B. Watson and B. F. Skinner, came with behaviourism to argue that a child can be made into any kind of person, regardless of their heredity. However other researchers questioned those findings and came with a different view  : Innativism. Innativists claimed that a child was born with innate abilities which are actualised in context. This view was influenced by Plato, a Greek philosopher who thought that Children begin life with knowledge already present within them,; they do not learn anything new but merely recollect knowledge that has previously lain dormant. Nativism was later adopted by Immanuel Kant, a German philosopher of the 18th centry. Kant argued that the mind is born with a number of innate catergories, mainly space, time and causality, which enable people to understand their senses. It is these catergories, nativists say, that make perception possible. (Gleitman, 173) In other words, knowledge of these concepts is innate. Charles Darwin was also among those who offered evidence of inherited knowledge with his universality thesis where, after some cross-cultural studies, he observed that some facial expressions are universal to all people. Darwin finally explained that all people are born with an innate understanding of these facial expressions. (Gleitman, 477) One of the domains in which this debate has found implications in education is language acquisition. Despite the existence of several theories of language development, this essay limits only to three of them that have a close link with the nature/nurture debate. According to behaviourist theory, language is viewed as a kind of verbal behaviour, and based on this view they argue that children learn language through imitation, reinforcement, analogy, and structured input. This is  linguistic empiricism. Empiricists think that language is entirely learned. This is the nurture or external perspective. In this context, language and grammar become features of the organisms environment. Language is a cultural artifact. This is based on beviourism as the general theory of learning described by the psychologist John B. Watson in 1923. On the other hand, there is linguistic nativism, which holds that the basics of language and grammar are innate. This is the nature or internal perspective. In this context, language and grammar are built into every human being at birth. They are universals that all humans share, as language is in the genes. This is the theory advocated by the American linguist Noam Chomsky who argued for a universal grammar wired in every child brain. This position was also adopted by Jerry Fodor (1983) who studied the relationship between language and mind and viewed language as a modular process with implications for a theory of language acquisition, especially language acquisition as genetically predetermined. The third interesting theory is called interactionist theory, and states that there is a both a biological and a social aspect to language development. It states that language is developed through a childs desire to communicate his or her thoughts and feelings. The foundation of this view of language acquisition was laid by Vygotsky, a psychologist and social constructivist. Vygotsky argued that social interaction plays an important role in the learning process and proposed the  zone of proximal development  (ZPD) where learners construct the new language through socially mediated interaction. Thisn theory was later adopted by  Jerome Bruner  [2]  who laid the foundations of a model of language development in the context of adult-child interaction. In education, it can be argued that both nature and nurture are responsible for how someone is today. For that reason, the position advocated by Robert Plomin would help to put both empiricism and nativism together for the good of children. Actually, the American Psychologist, Robert Plomin has demonstrated that genetic factors can mediate the link between the environment and person outcomes such as intelligence.   Actually, nowadays, it is commonly accepted that most aspects of a childs development are a product of the interaction of both nurture and nature (Bee, 2004) This means that aspects such as the innate ability of the child which is the inherited aspect of his life, and the environmental factors such as effects of family, peers, schools, neighborhoods, culture, the media, the broader society, and the physical environment. Should be taken into account. Nurture affects childrens development through multiple channels-physically through nutrition and activity; intellectually through informal experiences and formal instruction; socially through adult role models  and peer relationships (McDevitt and Ormrod, 2004: 7). At this point, one can share Ganly (2007) position and argue that à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ it is hard to completely distinguish between the two ideas. Nature will inevitably affect the classroom performance of a student because a student inherits certain traits that pertain to education. A student inherits the ability to do well in certain subjects and poor in other subjects. A student also inherits the certain psychological traits such as shyness or self confidence. The nature aspect is important as it helps to determine inherited possible disabilities such as reading disability, so giving making teachers proactive and intervene at earlier stages. Educators have therefore to make sure the inner nature of a child is respected, that a child feels wanted and put in a supportive environment to learn. There should be a balance between class time between acquisition activities and learning exercises.  

Henri Cartier-Bresson Photography Analysis

Henri Cartier-Bresson Photography Analysis Critical commentary on the picture- Henri Cartier-Bresson: Michel Gabriel, Rue Mouffetard, 1952 The photo that I am going to analyse is taken by the famous French photographer, Henri Cartier-Bresson, in 1952. He was famous for his candid photography, which was later developed as another kind of art ‘Street photography. His contribution towards photography art finally helped him own the name of ‘the father of modern photojournalism. The photo mainly captures a boy, Michel Gabriel, who is holding two magnums with his arms, and his face is actually exuding a kind of happiness and confidence which could supposedly be seen on a mature mans face. There are also two little girls captured in the photo, but their presence is a bit blurred since the boy holding the wine bottles is the main character. As mentioned in the previous paragraph, the boy was portrayed as a ‘man who was proud to be a drinker. In fact, the relationship between the boy, Michel Gabriel, and the photographer, Henri Cartier-Bresson, was very subtle because actually the boy and the photographer did not know each other; the photographer just shot the boy in a candid way. Therefore, it can be said that the relationship between them is very subtle, which is the photographer vs. the model, or the man with a camera vs. a boy with wine bottles. In this photo, the theory, Affective fallacy, suggested by W.K. Wimsatt and Monroe Beardsley can be applied. Affective fallacy is supposedly defined as a confusion between the poem and its results, but later this theory is also generally used to apply to viewing photographs, meaning that readers interpret the photographs through his/her personal emotion or affectionateness. The boy is holding two wine bottles with satisfied facial expression; readers like me may view this photo on the basis of intuition that the boy is happy because he could drink alcohol like an adult. However, this interpretation may be wrong since we do not know the intention of the photographer. To be more objective, the boy may just run across something which was intriguing on the street, and the photographer just captured the moment. Another interpretation would be the boy is just carrying two wine bottles filled with water (or empty) around for fun, which can be inferred from the background of the photo. First, the apartment and street implies that the place where the boy walks is a working class distract. Therefore, wine is possibly not affordable for a child like him; he may just play what popular within the working class area at that time. Second, the ambience of black and white of the photo, the clothing style of the boy, the impressed girls behind him, and the date can also help convince the readers that the boy is playing at the moment. However, if readers refer to the statement of Cartier-Bresson, the interpretations will be different. As Henri Cartier-Bresson said ‘photography is a way of shouting, freeing oneself, not of proving and asserting ones originality, so photography is a mean of telling the story or truth in which it captures the conversation, facial expression, gestures and presents them in a visual way which can be for later reflections. The meanings that are being shouted or freed by the photographer would be the concern about the boy drinking alcohol, about the drinking habits of his parents, and even about the way that the boy lives under the influence of his parents. The statement of Cartier-Bresson is thus in line with the viewpoint of Benjamin stressing that ‘photograph can release meaning that was not perceived at the time. There is no doubt that photography can capture an object; it can also capture time in which the moment will last forever. Therefore, the viewpoint from Kracauer is true because he stress that ‘photography captures time- memory outlast time, meaning that the image together with the meaning would become memory which can be recalled. Taking this photo as an example, it does document the time when people were living in Rue Mouffetard, and also the aura of surrounding area. Therefore, it is a good documentation recording the community life during that period. Yet, reading an image sometimes goes problematic as the photographer (creator) does not always provide a lucid explanation or his/her interpretation for the photos; therefore, different interpretation can be resulted. Using this photo as an example again, whatever the photographer, the boy, his parents, or even the girls behind the boy, they may have their own interpretations towards this photo. That is why sometimes reading images goes problematic. But I have to say that this ‘problematic reading can, to a certain extent, stimulate the imagination of readers, from the surface to the underneath of photos. With no doubt, the prevalence of ‘street photographs or ‘candid photographs can be attributable to Cartier-Bressons contributions. However, nowadays, this kind of art seems to be abused because you can see a lot of candid photographs through different social networking websites, blogs, etc. However, it has somehow become a flood because most of the photos taken, especially in my hometown Hong Kong, have no meanings; the photographers themselves even do not know what meanings they want to express or deliver to the readers, thus, it is a bit sad because what the readera can access may be just the superficial meanings. The reader, as well, should also view a photograph in a deeper way in which he or she can access to different dimensions of the photographs. Nowadays, people are inclined to glimpse photographs instead of reading them. He or she may only get the very superficial meanings of the photographs. That is why sometimes we need to view a photograph with theories. For me, the photographic theories do help me to view a photograph in a deeper and more complex way. I am impressed by what Cartier-Bresson said ‘taking photographs is a means of understanding which cannot be separated from other means of visual expression; it is true because once you press the shutter of your camera, the relationship between the object and you has been set up. However, you cannot deeply understand the object by just glimpsing it. A good photographer captures time; a good reader captures the meanings behind. Benjamins theory on photograph said ‘photograph can confirm ideological thinking, I absolutely agree to the statement as I think a photograph itself can establish discourse and semantics in its own world; that is why a photo can decode the culture, values whatever of an object or of a particular place. Therefore, I think that reading a photograph is quite similar to reading a text in which readers need to undergo the process of decoding. In a text, readers have to decode the words into image while in a photograph, they have to decipher the hidden meanings (images) into words. It can be said that readers can fully understand the photographs unless they immerse themselves in the hidden dimensions of the photographs. If a reader only views the photo through a glimpse, what he/she can get is superficial. Reference: http://www.biographybase.com/biography/Cartier_Bresson_Henri.html

Looking Through Anothers Eyes :: Personal Narrative Writing

Looking Through Another's Eyes As we adjusted our binoculars before walking on the Anhinga Trail, I wondered if we would actually get to see anything exciting with our binoculars. Unfortunately, as the professor tried to help me adjust mine, we discovered that the new binoculars I had just purchased had double vision. Disappointed, I raised my hopes even higher that we would see something up close that we would not necessarily need the binoculars for. Headed down the path, we saw an Anhinga and a few other birds that stayed long enough for me to quickly borrow a friend’s binoculars. Not far down the path from seeing the Anhinga, all of us quickly glanced over to the right in the bushes where we saw something move. One of our professors walked over to the bushes, bent over, and picked up a snake with his bare hands. It was a harmless snake, a Black Racer, but the capture of the snake still shocked us all. The professor calmly picked up the snake and began talking about it. At that moment, we were all excited that we had our very own Steve Erwin. I was excited that I was able to see something without needing a pair of binoculars. As our professor continued displaying the snake and trying to keep it from moving, the snake reached up and latched onto his finger for about five seconds until it let go. Our professor, of course, had no reaction as he again calmly waited for the snake to let go of his finger. Just barely breaking the skin, and a little blood, the professor eventually put the snake down as we all watched it slither away into the bushes. At the moment that the snake took hold of our professor’s hand, I couldn’t help but wonder what was going through the snake’s tiny brain. Was it â€Å"Geez this guy looks big, maybe if I bite him he will let me go,† or was it â€Å"hmmm, this finger looks awfully tasty; I think I’ll try a bite.† What was the real reason for the snake biting our professor? Was it out of fear, curiousness, or hunger? Considering how small the snake was, most of us would assume that it was afraid and was protecting itself. But how can we be sure? We are not snakes.