I Was Only Fourteen free essay sample

The warm air of spring blows through my hair, reminding me that summer is drawing nearer. I feel the branch beneath my feet begin to sway in the breeze. I toss my pen and paper to the ground below and lay back against the sturdy trunk. I am suspended, hanging high above the ground, held up only by a natural wooden support. Here, the world is mine to take control. I have no cares, no stress, and no worries. In my tree, I am free to think and feel without fear of ever being judged. Here, I think about life, loss, and love. Mostly, though, I think about the loss of my mom. I was only fourteen years old, a freshman in high school, when my mom passed away. There was no warning, no time to â€Å"prepare,† and shock was my only emotion. I have plenty of family and friends, but at this moment, I felt completely alone. We will write a custom essay sample on I Was Only Fourteen or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page I went through all of the so-called stages of grief, in no particular order and some more than others. I met with a personal counselor for two sessions, spent many days in the school counselor’s office, and held many late-night crying sessions via phone with my close friends. Though there was no one who completely understood, I did have people who were willing to listen. Various people informed me that I should find my own way to cope with this sudden loss. So I did just that. I read books about death, dying, and grief; this was known as â€Å"biblio-therapy.† I talked to friends, teacher, and anyone else who was willing to listen. I even spoke to my Sociology class and managed to inspire a few classmates to share their own experiences. Though being with other people helped greatly, my best method of â€Å"dealing† was simply being alone. I needed a sanctuary, and I found it right in my own front yard. My tree, which until recently I had been unable to climb, turned into a haven. Within its branches, I became shielded from not only the weather, but also the troubles of life. I was not simply hiding from life, but letting my problems sift through the leaves like beams of sunlight. I dealt with them one at a time, at my own pace, and with no fear of ridicule. Over the next three years, I started to become far more comfortable with my â€Å"unique† situation. I talked less and started listening more. I became a counselor for my friends, helping them with their problems and offering a shoulder to cry on. As much as I helped them, they helped me even more. They helped me realize that I could turn my negative experience into something positive. It was during this time that I decided to become a social worker or counselor, so that I could help others as they had helped me. As I watch the sunset through the branches, the sky looks even more brilliant from here, more vivid somehow. As the air becomes chilled by the darkening sky, I know it is time to leave for the night. I climb down slowly, savoring the feel of the rough bark against my palms. I make my way inside and settle into my bed, staring out the window. There, I see my tree, standing tall, proud, and ready for anything. I guess you could say the same about me.

Rugby Assignment Essays - Exercise Physiology, Biology, Medicine

Rugby Assignment Essays - Exercise Physiology, Biology, Medicine Rugby Assignment Question 1: What were the short term physiological changes happening to your body and how did this effect the way you run? 5 short term responses that occur after exercise: -Heart rate increase -Breathing rate increase -Skin colour change -Occurring of perspiration/sweat -Muscle soreness An increase of heart rate occurs because there are higher demands required achieve do the set activity. When physical activity is attempted the requirements of oxygen to the muscles are increased in order to shut down glycogen. Once glycogen is broken down ATP is produced, ATP releases energy that allows you to move. Since more oxygen is required for the muscles, more blood must be pumped through the body which results in an increase of waste. A higher heart rate effects performance in a negative way. Breathing rate is another big short term effect because it can either minimize or maximize your performance the higher the breathing rate the worse the performance. During exercise the muscle cells use up more oxygen and produce increased amounts of carbon dioxide. Your lungs and heart have to work harder to supply the extra oxygen and remove the carbon dioxide. Your breathing rate increases and you breathe more deeply. Considering the anaerobic system is being used the body still needs to make up for the loss of oxygen in order to break down lactic acid and replenish energy supplies. Skin colour is one of the most noticeable effects during exercise. Humans maintain a constant internal body temperature (homoethermic). To control the bodies temperature during or after exercise, the flow of blood is directed away from the core, to the skin where excess heat can escape. There are a lot of small capillaries in the face close to the skin, this is why your face turns more red than other areas. This is called vasodilation. Change in skin colour doesn't really affect performance. Perspiration plays a big role in cooling you down after exercise, As body temperature increases, sweat production increases. When your blood temperature becomes too high, vasodilation causes the flow of sweat which releases excess heat out into the environment and also onto your skin which will then evaporate to cool you down. This is why your perspiration levels increase during exercise. Muscle soreness is one of the most negative short term effects of exercise, when muscles are working waste products are produced when producing energy. One of them is lactic acid, lactic acid consists of muscle tightness and fatigue. This can be removed by warming down/stretching. These can affect performance greatly as the body wont be moving as well as it did before. Question 2: How/why is the major is the major energy system used in and how/why does that effect the way you run? The main energy system is ATP, It is composed of three phosphate groups. The energy that is stored within an ATP molecule is released for your muscles to use when the bond between the second and third phosphate groups is broken. Breaking this bond releases the third phosphate group on its own and reduces the ATP molecule to ADP. The ADP molecule can be restored back to its ATP form by refilling the missing phosphate group. This is the main energy system because it controls the intensity, the duration and the waste products of your body. This affects the duration and intensity of which you run at.

Christian muslim relation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Christian muslim relation - Essay Example My prayers have really improved after I gained an understanding of the Surah that declares Tawheed, Du’a, and the practical aspect of the Muslim conduct. The entire Surah stresses the importance of making supplication for all. When I read the Surah I learn that Allah has anger towards those that reject the truth since they go astray due to their ignorance. I believe the knowledge of the tafsir will enable one to know the consequences for sins while Muslim faithful can ask to guide them to a straight path. The words You alone we worship and from you alone we seek help give me comfort during salah and the rest of the day since Allah helps me out in my difficult situations. I have learned that Allah has chosen this Surah as the second pillar of Islam since it opens some of the greatest miracles. The Surah summarizes the purpose of life as I worship Allah since he is always merciful. May Allah always keep my feet on Siraat al-Mustaqeem, Inshallah. Ayah 76 of the Surah state that, â€Å"And when Jews met the Muslims they assert, we believe†, but they met in privacy they cite, â€Å"Shall we tell the Muslims what Allah has revealed to us Jews concerning the characteristics and the description of Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him), Muslims argue concerning the writing of the Torah before the Lord. Have the Jews got no understanding? This ayah Allah informs us concerning the children of Israel, the nation where Jews and Christians originated. Allah charged this nation with the duty of carrying his message to humanity. Allah did this and showed the nation many signs and miracles to convince them that he is a rational person while they became unreceptive to the truth and hardened their hearts. The nation failed to accept the message from Allah since the Message was the Truth and they did not submit to it. The nation had immense love of the worldly pleasures and love of themselves as they rejected the Message since they ha rdened their hearts.

Professional Portfolio Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Professional Portfolio - Essay Example Teaching nursing students involves teaching adults with grown minds hence confidence as a teacher gives student confidence. Good students enter into a learning process with the willingness and commitment to scoop what the teacher is offering them. Equally, good teachers provide an environment that is full of understanding, positive attitude as well as a demonstration of strong emotional feelings. They set goals and deadlines. They have social skills as role models, strong emotional feelings that enable them to deal with difficult students. I am a dedicated nursing educator; I know that nursing is a sturdy job. This means that there must be infinite dedication on the side of the practitioners into changing the world. This great trait helps me to inspire students by demonstrating to them that, even with the many years in the profession the educator has not lost his spark hence dedication is more important than basic skills. As a teacher, I incorporate my ‘student life’ in my profession. When I was a student, I learnt how to be patient and cooperative through the emphasis of my tutor. He would say that these traits were applicable during the nursing practice. The first incident that portrayed this involved an encounter with fire accident victims who required attention. With patience and cooperation with colleagues, I was able to defeat the fear and this has helped me through out my career. This gives student hope and a clear understanding of what to expect ahead. As a mentor, I ensure that I focus on helping students to overcome the challenges that are found in the nursing profession to becoming successful nurses. These challenges include anxiety, discouragement, fear and failure by exhibiting patience to my self and the students especially during classes, to enable them apply that in their later life as nurses. A good example is relaxing by taking a deep breath when answering questions from students as well as discussions among other

Laredo I.S.D. School Board Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Laredo I.S.D. School Board - Essay Example Additionally as in any group dynamic, those things affecting organizational behavior and ultimate action include the catalyst of leadership attributes of members, the vision, mission and goals of the organization, individual dedication and beliefs, and the social interaction required for board compliance and excellence in District performance (Kimbrough 1964). Specific to the Laredo I.S.D. Board of Trustees Public Facilities Corporation Public Hearing of Thursday October 16, 2008, a full agenda was published and each category on the itinerary was covered in the meeting. A significant part of the agenda was associated with budgets, tax allocation issues of one sort or another, and individual testimony associated with behavior and cultural issues in the district environment. A high level view of the 33 agenda items are listed in appendix A. The structure and format of the agenda is arranged in a specific manner to ensure consistency and follow up. The agenda included Board of Directors as well as Board of Trustees meeting components. As evidenced by the scope of the agenda items, a variety of district education and fiduciary issues were given space on the docket to encourage discussion and ultimate action including approval or disapproval. ... The issues that received the most attention included financial and budget reports. Votes that were taken during this meeting included approval of various budget and tax related issues as well as other administrative board decisions. There were a hand full of individuals that utilized the public forum, and their issues were heard and recorded for further action. Public speakers included: Janet Bowman; Pamela Sheran; Juan Gutierrez; Anna Maria Hernandez; Mr. Lavienia; Mr. Cabooses; Mr. Sinuous; and Mr. Bueno. Other presentations and comments were by staff members including Mr. Alvaro Perez, Chief Financial Officer Mr. Raul Cisneros, Executive Director for Facilities and Support Services; Mr. David Garza, Executive Director of Curriculum and Instruction; Mr. Gerardo Cruz, Mrs. Ofilia Chapa, Ms. Elsa Arce, and Mrs. Severita Sanchez; Mr. Jose A. Valdez; Mr. Daniel Rigal; Mrs. Guillermina Montes; Mr. George M. Beckelhymer; Mr. John Peter Montalvo; Mr. Jesus J. Guerra; Mr. John Kazen; Ms. E lizabeth G. Henry, Internal Auditor; Mr. Ernesto Guajardo, Ex. Director for Human Resources; and Mrs. Veronica Castillon, Director of Communications. In combination, the speakers presented issues associated with the school board oversight responsibility on budgets, investments, bids, and other administrative functions. The overall impression of the experience of viewing the board proceedings was positive, although there were many uncomfortable political and personal attacks in the open forum component. The general professional conduct of the meeting was fairly impressive regardless of the posture and negativity of some speakers. It was obvious that there is a strong political component interwoven in the board activities and meeting agenda items. The agenda was well structured and

Impact of Movies in Generating Social Awareness

Impact of Movies in Generating Social Awareness INTRODUCTION Movies are rollercoaster ride that have the tremendous power to entertain and to teach. They can be a powerful tool to bring about effective social change true or false? It seems intuitive and logical that a well made film- especially one with a compelling narrative and well-crafted outreach plan would serve as a catalyst to change minds, encourage viewers to change entrenched behaviors, and start inform or reenergize social movements (Diana Barrett and Sheila Leddy, Assessing Creative Medias Social Impact, Fledging Fund, Dec08). But another group of people believe that it can be surprisingly difficult to make a firm connection between the power of a film and social change so the social impact of movies needs to be better understood and documented although it is important to note that not all films are intended to be agents of social change, nor should they be. Some are simply lovely moving stories whose primary purpose is to entertain and share a compelling story. Researchers also believe that even if movies do not intend to contribute to the formation of values, they most assuredly do. By virtue of its interactive nature and arousing content, movies are influencing our values and expectation of reality, regardless of our willingness to be influenced. Although the learning is unintentional, it is just as effective as intentional learning and influences our thoughts and behavior. The impulse to celebrate the impact of movies is understandable-all that glamour, glitzy visibility and cultural panache (G. Kendrick MacDowell, Yes, movies affect us, but). Movies can be seen as a source of diversion in peoples everyday lives. They are loved by one and all, irrespective of gender and age. It cannot be out rightly denied that movies influence us and affect our behavior in some way or another. The impact can be either good or bad. The purpose of this paper is to explore the link between films and coordinated outreach efforts as change agents. i.e. whether an individual would actually change his opinion after seeing a movie. If yes, then movies are a very powerful medium to fight against the perils of the society. RESEARCH AVAILABLE Early studies on impact of movies on people In 1920s movie exploded as mainstream entertainment as there were no radio or TV set during that period. A lot of researchers believed that movies had impact on attitude and behaviours of people and they launched a series of studies focusing on effect of films. There were 13 studies conducted primarily by Edgar Dale. He studied film content and categorized them into 10 groups. An observation which came out was more than 75% fall into crime, love and sex categories. Interestingly same kind of trend can also probably been seen today. Edgar Dale used census, survey, questionnaires, case studies and personal interviews in his study. It was observed movies caused attitude, emotions, behavioural change in people who were the part of the study. Herbert Blumer conducted questionnaires and interviews with people to study how watching movies affected their behaviour. Most of the people who were studied believed that they had been influenced by movies in some way (A brief History of Media Effects Research). In one of the study, Andrew Butler of Washington University decided to simulate a classroom where films were used as a teaching tool. The accurate version of an historical event was taught to the students and they were also made to watch a movie associated with that event. The movie that was shown contained both accurate and inaccurate information about the historical incidents they depicted. The idea was to see which method led to the most accurate comprehension of the events: teaching or watching a movie. The results were really interesting, when the information in the film and the reading were contradictory that is, when the film was inaccurate the students were more likely to recall the films distorted version and were very confident in their memories, even though they were wrong (Herbert, Wray, I Learned It at the Movies, Scientific American Mind). In the last ten years, however, outreach strategies, have become a central component of movies, spurred by a new generation of producers (Whiteman, David , The evolving impact of documentary film: sacrifice and the rise of issue-centered outreach (1)). Thus at the societal level, movies are assumed to play a role in transmitting, maintaining, and reinforcing the societal and cultural consensus. They cultivate images of society by interpreting the world in terms of what is what is important what is right' and what is related to what else. In other words, movies generally show a view of reality (Kane, Harrison D., Taub, Gordon E., Hayes, B. Grant, Interactive Media and Its Contribution to the Construction and Destruction of Values and Character). Films affect perceptions that people hold about the world at large and its inhabitants in particular. Even though some people may like to disregard cinema as only a frivolous means of entertainment and nothing beyond that, one cannot ignore the fact that there have been film makers who have managed to lift veil on a hidden plight. It might be about an injustice to a minority, or the courageous story of change by a single individual, but either way it raises awareness about the issue at hand (Robert Oakes, Movies Promoting Social Change). One of the most popular papers on this topic considers the following factors to be important for a movie to make an impact: Quality of the movie The movie should have a compelling narrative that can not only engage the viewers but also illustrate complex problems in a lucid manner. Ability of the film to create awareness about an issue- Awareness is the first step to any kind of social change. Care should be taken to see whether the film could reach people beyond those who already knew and cared about the issue illustrated in the movie. Public engagement This implies not only being aware of the issue to taking action on it. To evaluate a films success in this regard one can look at participation in response to facilitated dialogues, blogs, activity on various social networking sites and participation level in various Actions campaigns that are organized around that issue. The ultimate objective is the social change. It is a long and complex process, however, in some cases there are key indicators of success. These can be in the form of legislative or policy changes or a shift in public dialogue or how issues are framed and discussed. A lot of film makers are making full use of the social power of the internet to drive their social campaigns. Not only are viewers being encouraged to visit and discuss the movie on online forums after having viewed it ,but, a lot of filmmakers are also using websites to create a community before the film has been released. This is slowly becoming a critical strategy to deepen the reach and impact of films. Engaging a pre release audience increases their investment in the film and logically increases the likelihood that they will see the film and take some action. The film makers are expanding their digital reach to the likes of Facebook, YouTube, MySpace and Twitter to draw in new and diverse audiences who generally may not have been interested in a movie of that particular genre or issue. (Diana Barrett and Sheila Leddy, Assessing Creative Medias Social Impact, Fledging Fund, Dec08) RESEARCH GAP The current research available is mainly based on the movies being an effective teaching tool but little research is available on role of movies and their influence on values of an individual to generate social awareness. The little research that is available is based on impact of Hollywood movies (English) which become rather irrelevant as majority of people in India primarily watch Bollywood movies. We came across no article that measures the change in social behaviour of people vis-Ã  -vis a Bollywood movie. This is a research gap which we would like to address by trying to analyze the effect certain Hindi movies had on changing the perception of masses pertaining to particular social issues. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES The purpose of the paper is to understand and analyze the extent to which movies influence peoples perception about various social issues. Contributions of factors such as the movie characteristics, movie success in making a movie an effective instrument for generating social awareness will also be analyzed. RESEARCH HYPOTHESIS Hypothesis 1: Movies have a favorable impact in generating social awareness. Hypothesis 2: Box office success of a movie is the most effective factor in generating social awareness. The variables and the metrics for measurement can be listed as: Concept Variable Instruments Respondents attributes Age Gender Questionnaire (closed questions) Movie Characteristics Storyline Questionnaire Interviews (Rating Scale Likert Scale) Popularity of director Questionnaire Interviews (Rating Scale Likert Scale) Popularity of the star cast Questionnaire Interviews (Rating Scale Likert Scale) Promotion Done Questionnaire Interviews (Rating Scale) Success of the movie Critical Acclaim Secondary Data Box Office Success Secondary Data Awards Won Secondary Data Action Pre- Post Questionnaire Impact Pre- Post Questionnaire Media publicity Secondary data Pre- Post Questionnaire to gauge the level of participation (Rating Scale) MODEL The model links the movie characteristics and success of the movies to the overall social awareness generated. Respondents attributes consisting of gender acts as the mediator for this model. The constructs decided for the research are: Movie Characteristics: This construct consists of variables such as the storyline of the movie, popularity of the director star cast and the promotion done for the movie Success of the Movie: This construct consists of variables such as critical acclaim, the movies box office success and the various awards won by the movie Social Awareness Generated: This construct consists of certain variables such as the action taken, the impact generated and the media publicity generated due to the movie Respondents age and gender are taken as the mediator to analyze whether they have any influence on the success of the movie and consequently the impact generated by it. Both primary and secondary data will be used to measure the various variables used in this research. For the primary data, an online questionnaire will be given to people across different age groups. We plan to survey as many people as possible who are regular movie watchers, regular readers of newspapers, magazines and people who watch television are exposed to the internet. We will also go through relevant articles and journals from EBSCO and other web sources to carry out a literature review, which would consist of the secondary data. The issues we would be addressing are patriotism, religious tolerance and women empowerment. We would take 2 movies per issue and study the impact they had. The movies chosen would be differentiated on the basis of the variables we define. Movie Characteristics Success of the Movie Social Awareness Generated The variables will be measured with the help of the survey floated to the respondents. The variables will be measured with the help of : Primary data gathered through a survey floated to the respondents Secondary data in the form of online research and literature review The variables will be measured with the help of : Primary data gathered through a survey floated to the respondents Secondary data in the form of online research and literature review Model Parameters Movie Characteristics: This parameter consist the characteristics of the movie, various components which define the movie Storyline This component indicates how well the issue has been depicted through the movies script. The film should have a compelling narrative that can not only engage the viewers but also illustrate complex problems in a lucid manner. Popularity of the Director Star Cast The popularity of the director has a major impact on the pre release success and ratings a movie. The more the popularity and fame of the director and the star cast the more will be people talk about it. Promotion Done This component will incorporate the promotional activities undertaken before the release of the movie. The pre-release promotion and publicity of the movie plays a significant role in the revenue generated. Through our research we will try to analyze how these variables impact the success of a movie and the social awareness generated by it. Success of the Movie: Different people have different criteria while measuring the success of a movie. For some it is the revenue generated by the movie, for others it comprises of the number of awards the movie has won. The various components which represent a movies success are listed below. Critical Acclaim Movies are often judged by the reviews from the critics. Many people go to watch a movie only if it has a good critical rating. Word of mouth is usually perceived as more credible and trustworthy, and it is more readily accessible through social networks (Banerjee 1992; Brown and Reingen 1987; Murray 1991). Box Office Success This component refers to the box office revenue generated by a movie. This directly depends on the ticket sales and the number of people who come to watch the movie. Many people associate the success of a movie with the revenue generated by it. Awards Won The success of a movie also depends on the number of awards won by it. Movies like Ben Hur, Titanic and Lord of The Rings are considered to be one of the most successful movies and each of them won 11 awards at Oscars. Social Awareness Generated: The ultimate objective is the social change. It is a long and complex process, however, in some cases there are key indicators of success. These can be in the form of legislative or policy changes or a shift in public dialogue or how issues are framed and discussed. One needs to be clear about the kind of social issue that a movie addresses and accordingly set reasonable expectations in respect of impact generated. In this paper we intend to evaluate the social change in the society by the following three variables: Action- Under this we look at the short term effect i.e. in terms of the immediate actions taken by the respondents as result of the impact caused by the movie in question. Impact- This variable looks at a more long term effect caused by the movie in terms of changes in peoples perception, attitude and behavior towards a particular issue or cause. Media Publicity- The social awareness generated by the movie can be assessed by the publicity generated in the media about the issue addressed in the movie in terms of talk shows dedicated to it, stars who endorse the issue, forum dedicated for it on social networking sites and articles or papers published in the print media. In this research paper we intend to study these variables via pre-post questionnaire, where in we will try and gauge the change in the level of activity under all these variables before the respondents saw the movie and after they saw the movie. Literature Review Diana Barrett and Sheila Leddy in their paper Assessing Creative Medias Social Impact (Fledging Fund, Dec08) stated that while looking at a movie as having the potential for social impact it is important to move beyond the box office success and look at the overall impact generated. While one looks at the number for people who saw the film, whats more important is how many people understood the issue for which it was made. It is not reasonable to expect broad social change if there is little awareness of the fact that a problem exists. In some cases, just getting the audience to watch the film and better understand the issue is sufficient. Creating awareness is of prime importance while trying to bring a social change. According to this study the films promotion and outreach activities play an important role in not only increasing the size of the audience and sales but to use films as vehicles of social change. The core dimension of impact remains the quality of the film. This basically means that the film should have a compelling narrative that can not only engage the viewers but also illustrate complex problems in a lucid manner. For this measure researchers look at a lot of dimensions such as festival acceptance, theatrical success, online buzz, international and national DVD sales as well as traditional film reviews and awards. The next is the ability of the film to create awareness about an issue, as awareness is the first step to any kind of social change. Here the researchers have considered both the audience size as well as the diversity of the audience. It makes an attempt to see whether the film could reach people beyond those who already knew and cared about the issue illustrated in the movie. A regularly debated question is whether the presence of stars critical to the success of a movie? The industry is full of actors and actresses but it is the ones who are on the top of the pyramid who command the highest payments. There is a lot of academic literature on whether the presence of stars affects the performance of a movie, however, the results have been mixed. Direct and absolute causal relationship has not been established. Movies are complex creative goods that are the results of teams of creative people working together (Caves 2000). A popular star as a part of a movie is like a source of free advertising for the movie. He/she can help the film maker to garner valuable resources (in this case the audience) for him/her to be able to reach out to the masses to make the presence of his movie felt (Anita Elberse , The Power of Stars: Do Star Actors Drive the Success of Movies?). In the arena of new product development, word of mouth (WOM) plays significant roles because building consumer awareness is of vital importance, and consumers need information when deciding whether to purchase a product they do not know well (Mahajan, Muller, and Kerin 1984). Word of mouth is supposed to be more credible and trustworthy, and it is more readily accessible through social networks (Banerjee 1992; Brown and Reingen 1987; Murray 1991). A McKinsey Company study found that 67% of the sales of consumer goods are based on WOM (Taylor 2003). EXPECTED FINDINGS This research aims to analyze whether movies have a favorable impact in generating social awareness. The literature review shows that people are influence by movies and their behavior and thought process is shaped by what they see on celluloid. Through this paper we want to study how peoples thought process, perceptions, attitude and actions change if the movie is successful in generating awareness about a particular social cause. In addition to this we would also be studying the various factors that determine the success of a movie as contributors to the social impact generated by the movie. In this category our primary focus would lie on finding out whether box office success of a movie is the most effective factor in generating social awareness or not. This is because the box office result of the movie is the most widely known and acknowledge parameter to establish its success. LIKELY IMPLICATIONS Likely implications of this research is that if movies can be established as an instrument for creating social change, then they can be used effectively in the future for generating awareness about various social issues and mobilizing the masses for the same. Some of the benefits that are likely to arise as a result of this study are: Understand the extent to which the various determinants of success factor influence the social impact generated Influence and impact of the star cast, directive and narrative in facilitating the reach of the movie and the issue involved to the audiences in various strata of society Analyzing the sustainability of the awareness created among the people LIMITATIONS Limitations of this research study would be as follows: The respondents personal bias towards the movie or its related characteristics such as star cast et al. may distort the responses obtained There is scope for recency error to occur when respondents are asked to recollect details about the movie characteristics The sample taken for study is very small and may not be much diversified as compared to the actual population that watches movies FUTURE RESEARCH Further research may be carried out on a more extensive scale to determine exactly what factors influence the impact of a movie on the people and accordingly an appropriate mix of these factors can be designed to make a movie more effective. Specific research may be carried out to determine those issues where movies as a medium of social change are most effective.

Comparing Story of an hour vs The Yellow Wall Paper :: essays research papers

Comparing Short Stories   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Kate Chopin’s â€Å"The Story of an Hour† and Charlotte Gilman’s â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper† are both centralized on the feministic views of women coming out to the world. Aside from the many differences within the two short stories, there is also similarities contained in Chopin’s â€Å"The Story of an Hour† and Gilman’s â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper,† such as the same concept of the â€Å"rest treatment† was prescribed as medicine to help deal with their sickness, society’s views on the main character’s illness, and both stories parallel in the main character finding freedom in the locked rooms that they contain themselves in.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Both â€Å"The Story of an Hour† and Charlotte Gilman’s â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper† display women discovering freedom from society’s standards during the setting’s time period. In â€Å"The Story of an Hour,† Louise locks herself in her room after discovering that her husband has died and at that point in the story she finds herself more confident in herself. She exclaims, â€Å"Free! Body and soul free!† (Chopin 83). After she believed her husband died she finally had reason to take initiative in life and did not have to live a life were nothing was expected of her. She found freedom in locked quarters. Just as John’s wife did in â€Å"The Yellow Wallpaper.† As the wife’s sickness progressed, her anxiety over the yellow wallpaper increased. The patterns developed within the walls showed the image of a woman creeping along, and as the shadows of the bars from the window cast across the woman. Th is can symbolize how she is like the shadow, imprisoned in her room and mansion. As time moved forward, the wife fully identifies with the image in the wall, and by the end of the story she locks herself in her room and frees the woman behind the bars by pealing off most of the wallpaper.

African American Gay Rights Essay

I cannot begin to argue about African American/Hispanic LGBT, living in New York City and their civil rights without remembering the public outcry against black civil rights. Although the focus of this paper is on African American/Hispanic LGBT living in New York City and Their Rights to Marriage I have decided to start my paper of by discussing the civil rights movement of the 1960’s. The civil rights movement of the 1960’s and the continuing struggle against race-based discrimination were rooted in the struggle against slavery. As early as the eighteen hundreds the United States legislative had laws known as segregation laws that limited certain freedom to them. They had to live in separate neighborhood, attend separate schools, drive in the back of public buses verses in the front where Whites were; African American would not dare go against these laws back then because if and when they did, they were unjustly imprisoned, beaten lynched and more for just trying to exercise human rights. In the 1960s African Americans led a fight to remove the legally codified vestiges of slavery from our constitution and from state and local laws. Most repulsive among these, were Jim Crow laws that required racial segregation; African Americans had to endure all these things until The Civil Rights Movement. The modern concept of civil rights was pioneered by African Americans in their long struggle to become full citizens of the United States. From the Civil Rights Movement to the Stonewall Riots of 1969 to May 17, 2004, the LGBTQ movement has made some tremendous gains into mainstream society, a reality that has not been afforded to African Americans. The African American Civil Rights Movement gave birth to many other civil rights movements in the 1960s. African Americans not only made new law, their success gave new hope. Among the many efforts sparked by the African American Civil Rights Movements were the efforts to end discrimination against women, Hispanic Americans, Native Americans, and Asian Americans, people with disabilities and lesbians and gays. Some African American still has one more river to cross because now African American LGBT are fighting a new civil war, the fight for same sex marriage; the right to be legally married. Currently, marriage has two distinct components: civil marriage and the religious ritual of marriage. Mixed-gender couples can have a civil marriage without the religious ceremony/ritual. Couples can have a religious ceremony/ritual, without a civil marriage. Some couples can choose both. However, to receive the legal protections of marriage, a couple must have a civil marriage, which is the only marriage that can be addressed by courts or legislatures. The LBGT believe that the rights and legal protections of civil marriage that are given to mixed-gender couples and families should also be extended to couples and families who are headed by same-gender couples. These include the rights of survivorship, inheritance, insurance, joint income tax filing, and a myriad of rights that many mixed-gender couples take for granted. For African American LGBT, state regulation has been particularly harsh. State sodomy law has had a way of preventing LGBT from acquiring some of the rights they are entitle to. Today, fewer than half the state has sodomy laws. LGBT recognizes New York City for being the birth place for many modern gay movements; however, New York has not yet passed any law giving LGBT legal protection and political support, (right to marriage being on of them). New York State gay rights bill, first introduced in 1971, still has not become law. While other states, like Vermont has established civil unions for LGBT, New York has not. Andy Humm writes that the biggest gay-related debate throughout the country right now is over government sanction of same-sex elationships. Vermont has gone the furthest, establishing â€Å"civil unions† for gay couples that confer almost all of the rights to which a married man and woman are entitled, though stopping short of full legal marriage. New Yorkers may travel to Vermont for the civil ceremony as of July 1, but there is some question as to what legal weight it will carry back home. The federal government enacted the â€Å"Defense of Marriage Act† (DOMA) in 1996 when it looked as if Hawaii might give same-sex couples marriage licenses. It barred federal recognition of legal same-sex marriages performed in any state and gave the other states the right not to honor such a contract. Thirty-two states have passed laws barring recognition of same-sex marriages performed in other states, even though no state or nation allows gay couples to obtain a marriage license. (Holland will likely be the first in 2001. ) A New York version of the Defense of Marriage Act is pending in Albany, but has not had a vote in either chamber. Bibliography Diane Silver et al. , The New Civil War: The Lesbian and Gay Struggle For Civil Rights (New York; New York:1997), 25-26 Andy Humm, â€Å"The State of gay rights in New York,† Available http://www. gothamgazette. com/iotw/gayrights/ (Accessed May 16, 2005).

History of Coca-Cola Essay

Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines internationally. The Coca-Cola Company claims that the beverage is sold in more than 200 countries. [l] It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company in Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke (a registered trademark of The Coca- Cola Company in the United States since March 27, 1944). Originally intended as a patent medicine when it was invented in the late 19th century by John Pemberton, Coca-Cola was bought out by businessman Asa Griggs Candler, whose marketing tactics led Coke to its dominance of the world soft-drink market throughout the 20th century. The company produces concentrate, which is then sold to licensed Coca-Cola bottlers throughout the world. The bottlers, who hold territorially exclusive contracts with the company, produce finished product in cans and bottles from the concentrate in combination with filtered water and sweeteners. The bottlers then sell, distribute and erchandise Coca-Cola to retail stores and vending machines. Such bottlers include Coca-Cola Enterprises, which is the largest single Coca-Cola bottler in North America and western Europe. The Coca-Cola Company also sells concentrate for soda fountains to major restaurants and food service distributors. The Coca-Cola Company has, on occasion, introduced other cola drinks under the Coke brand name. The most common of these is Diet Coke, with others including Caffeine-Free Coca-Cola, Diet Coke Caffeine-Free, Coca-Cola Cherry, Coca-Cola Zero, Coca-Cola Vanilla, and special editions with lemon, lime or coffee. In response to consumer insistence on a more natural product, the company is in the process of phasing out E211, or sodium benzoate, the controversial additive used in Diet Coke and linked to DNA damage in yeast cells and hyperactivity in children. The company has stated that it plans to remove E211 from its other products, including Sprite and Oasis, as soon as a satisfactory alternative is found

you are what you eat essays

you are what you eat essays People are, as the expression goes, what they eat. After all, the muscles in a persons body, and the blood flowing through their veins, are all supplied by the food that he or she consumes. Understandably, these foods would also have an effect on the way the brain functions. The foods we eat have measurable effects on the bodys performance, they may prove to have an even more critical influence on how the brain handles its tasks. The idea that the right foods, or the natural neurochemicals they contain, can enhance mental capabilities such as by defusing stress. (Blun 2) In the 1970s, Dr. Richard Wurtman of MIT and his graduate student, John Ferstrom, discovered that the nutrient composition of a meal affects the brains neurotransmitters, substances that control nerve impulses. They also found in rats, that the neurotransmitters dopamine and serotonin had great involvement with food intake. Dr. Wurtmans wife, Judith, later found that the carbohydrate content of a meal might influence dopamine and serotonin synthesis. Dopamine is related with alertness; it is used for fast reflexes, mental energy, and to assist in problem solving. Serotonin helps a person deal with stress. When the brain uses serotonin, feelings of stress and anxiety are replaced by a sense of tranquillity, often to the extent of somnolence.(Trankina 2) Serotonin is a composite of tryptophan, an amino acid that is found in food. The most simplistic way to obtain tryptophan is by consuming a high-carbohydrate meal, and avoiding foods containing protein and fat. (1-3) People in general are better able to cope with stress when their diets are high in complex carbohydrates. Many people misconstrue helpful, complex carbohydrates with sugary, refined carbohydrates. Refined carbohydrates are contained in foods such as white breads, sugar coated cereals, white rice, and other flour-based carbo...

Human Rights Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Human Rights - Research Paper Example Article 1 of the universal human rights provides that all individuals are born free and equal while article 7 outlaws discrimination of individuals. Article 10 requires all people suspected of crimes to have access to free and fair trial while Article 16 provides for free consent to marriage and equality of the marriage partners. Accordingly, Article 17 provides that all individuals have the right to own economic property while Article 18 safeguards the right of individuals to select their own religion. On the other hand, cultural relativism entails selective implementation of the universal rights depending on the prevailing cultural norms in the society. This paper will define human rights and discuss the articles of Universal Declaration of human rights. The paper will also discuss the universality versus cultural relativism perspectives of human rights. Human rights Introduction Human rights refers to those rights and freedoms that are inherent to all the human beings regardless o f the sex, nationality, ethnic origin, language, religion or any other identifiable characteristic of an individual (Darraj, 2010). Human rights are safeguarded by numerous national laws and international laws that include treaties and customary law. The international law requires the national governments to safeguard the human rights of its citizens from any possible violation (Darraj, 2010). One of the underlying principles of human rights is the universality principle that asserts that human rights are inherent and inalienable. According to this principle, all human beings are born with certain human dignity and rights that should not be violated such as the right to life and right to be freed from forced labour (Darraj, 2010). The second principle of human rights is the interrelatedness and interdependence principle that asserts that all human rights contribute to a higher wellbeing of the individual. For instance, violation of the right to social welfare will also negatively on the right to life (Streich, 2008). The third governing principle of human rights is the non-discrimination and equality principle that requires that human beings should never suffer any discrimination based on their physical attributes or psychological attributes such as differences in religion, ethnicity, religion, nationality or even sexual orientation (Darraj, 2010). Another cornerstone principle of human rights is participation and inclusion of individuals in the decisions that affect their welfare. National governments must seek the input of the citizens, civil society and minorities before making decisions that affect the welfare of the citizens (Streich, 2008). The last principle of human rights is the accountability principle that requires states to take responsibility and accountability in safeguarding the rights of the citizens. Streich (2008) asserts that national governments must create and enforce legislation that ensures all human rights are safeguarded from abuse. Th e core human rights treaties include the treaty on economic, social and cultural rights, the treaty on the elimination of torture, the treaty on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women, the treaty on protection of the rights of child and treaty on rights of migrant workers (Darraj, 2010).

History of the Internet Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

History of the Internet - Essay Example The history of the internet appears to have begun in In 1858, where Frank Leslies Illustrated Newspaper covered the story concerning the laying of the transatlantic cable. Once the laying of this cable was complete, it was easy to say that the Atlantic Ocean had been more or less erased as a communication barrier between the old world and the new. Of course, the cable did not bring Europe closer to America in physical terms but just as the internet allows the transfer of large amounts of information from one point to another, the transatlantic cable did the same for its time. That was perhaps the first example of modern technology being said used to negate such large geographical distances. Certainly the telegraph existed long before that since the telegraph had been invented by Joseph Henry in 1830. While the language of the internet today may be HTML, Samuel Morse first used his Morse code to send meaningful words through electronic means. In fact, only in 1843, the first American telegraph long distance line was ordered to be put between the cities of Washington and Baltimore to cover a distance of 40 miles once this line became operational the first message to be sent electronically from one city to another was a quote from the bible that said, â€Å"What hath God Wrought?† (Bellis, 2005). This rudimentary internet by today’s standard was the height of technology at the time and in the next few years; lines were laid down from Philadelphia to New York. In 1861, Western Union completed the line called the transcontinental telegraph line since that ran along the transcontinental railway to provide coast to coast communications (Bellis, 2005). Certainly not the internet but as the internet today is more of a business tool than anything else, companies were quick to realize the potential of rapid communications. Business could use this