Preparation Outline for Informative Speech Essay

Introduction As long as I can remember my family has always had food on the table and a family gathering on the fourth November in our home. We have all heard elementary stories of wood cabins and the Pilgrims and Indians celebrating thanksgiving. Though, I never knew the reason they were celebrating. Today as Thanksgiving is closely approaching, I am going to talk to you about the history of Thanksgiving, its traditions, and how our era and personal preferences influence the traditions in our celebrations. First let’s start by learning the origination of the Thanksgiving holiday. I. According to Caleb Johnson’s The Mayflower, â€Å"The pilgrim’s gave thanks in 1621 (the actual date unknown) for the first time.† A. In this article he has a published Plimouth letter. This letter gives us insight as to why they celebrated a day of thanks and with what foods. B. This being that the pilgrims had a scarce crop the years before that had led to sickness and death. The foods they celebrated with was a variety of foods from their crop, many fish, and wildlife animals. So because in the year of 1621 their crops group plentiful, the people of Plimouth decided give thanks to god for their year of blossoming crops. So they celebrated with food and thanks for 3 days. C. This is also the only known account of the Plimouth’s celebration for years to come. The next account was some twenty years later in a published article by William Bradford. So how did a National Holiday come into effect? Why the fourth Thursday? II. The years leading up to a National Holiday A. The Continental Congress proclaimed the first national Thanksgiving in 1777. Yet, Presidents Washington, Adams and Monroe proclaimed national Thanksgivings, but the custom fell out of use by 1815, after which the celebration of the holiday was limited to individual state observances. B. By the 1850s, almost every state and territory celebrated Thanksgiving. C. The plimoth.org site states, â€Å"In 1827, Sarah Josepha Hale began a campaign to reinstate the holiday after the model of the first Presidents. She publicly petitioned several Presidents to make it an annual event. Though her efforts did not succeeded until 1863, when she convinced President Lincoln that a national Thanksgiving might serve to unite a war-torn country.† D. According to History.com it was not until 1941 that the fourth Thursday of November be the permanent date for thanksgiving. Where does a turkey come into play? What are the traditions of this Holiday? III. Thanksgiving traditions and how they came into effect. A. The simplest tradition of Thanksgiving is to come together and give thanks. B. Thanksgiving is also known as Turkey Day. Why? Well according to slate.com, Turkeys just so happened to not have anything to do with the first Thanksgiving. They were fresh, affordable, and big enough to feed a crowd. Among the big birds, turkey was ideal for a fall feast. C. By 1863, when Lincoln proclaimed Thanksgiving a national holiday, turkeys had taken center stage at Thanksgiving. IV. In this era we have added a few Thanksgiving traditions. A. Alder says, â€Å"Pro football has become as big a tradition at Thanksgiving as the turkey and if your Thanksgiving celebrations are like mine, most of the football fans head right for the television as soon as they hit the door.† B. According to USA today, â€Å"A little more than 60 years after the holiday’s formal recognition, another tradition was born: the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Started in 1924, the department store’s first parade included actual animals from the Central Park Zoo.† C. Thanksgiving traditions don’t end on Thanksgiving Day. In the 1950s, the  day after Thanksgiving was called Black Friday by factory managers because so many workers called in sick and the Philadelphia Police Department took to calling the day Black Friday to describe the traffic jams, crowds and shoplifters during the start of the holiday shopping season. Black Friday signals the start of the holiday shopping season, but it may be a tradition that’s continuing to evolve as stores vie to be the earliest to open Thanksgiving Day. In conclusion, the history of Thanksgiving dates back to 1621. It takes many years before it becomes a permanent national holiday for the American society. Throughout the years Americans have in cooperated new traditions as well as maintained the old. As O. Henry says, â€Å"There is one day that is ours. Thanksgiving Day is the one day that is purely American.†

Lifestyle Diseases

Since the dawn of civilization, man’s physical attributes have always been in accordance with the work he was supposed to do. It has been proven that we were ape like before and had lots of body hair, which was then to protect us from cold. Eventually as time passed our physicality changed a lot, and we started to walk erect, but still we were built in such a way that we were fit for hunting and to endure other physical conditions. As centuries began to unfold, we started developing at a brisk pace and we have reached a stage of today, where we can get food by paying money for which we have to work, and that too doesn’t have to be necessarily a strenuous labor job. This change in lifestyle has brought about a lot of positivism and negativity in our lives.Today we don’t have to strive for food nor fight wild animals, but today we have to work long hours, which how much ever tiring maybe aren’t strenuous to what we had to do earlier. This exact change has br ought in the ‘lifestyle diseases’, which are responsible for maximum deaths in countries which are either developed or are in the brink of becoming developed. Today we have development in the field of medicine and the diseases of yester years are either extinct or they don’t possess a threat much. Since we don’t have much threat from infectious diseases as much as we had before, the life style diseases which mainly comprise of the following, affect us the most:These diseases have been associated with the new way of life and come into the generic term of lifestyle diseases. Compared to the olden times, today obesity is a major problem which can be assessed by the following:‘By 2001, almost 21 percent of adults were obese, representing a nearly 75 percent increase. Because these data are based on self-reported height and weight, obesity rates are most likely even higher than these estimates suggest. Results from the 1999 National Health and Nutrition E xamination Survey, which collects data through clinical measurements, found that approximately 30 percent of U.S. adults are obese and an additional 34 percent are overweight and Even more alarming is the increase of those who are morbidly obese; that is, those who are 100 pounds or more overweight’ (Eileen Salinsky).Obesity has been the root of many problems. Today children are always eating processed junk food and cola rather than salads and vegetables and milk. The pizzas and burgers how much ever scrumptious it is, cannot be considered as a main food and due to this reason not children but adults too tend to bloat up. An obese person is always at risk for heart diseases, diabetes and liver diseases. Being obese makes a person more inactive, this leads to other problems of muscles and joints. For obesity it is said that the more you eat the more you are eaten from inside. Today diseases like cancer have been one of the prime forces in eliminating mankind. There have been l ots of deaths and amputations that have been accounted to cancer.This diseases which was not much active in the olden times, is today’s prime diseases. Cancer has various forms, and if not it could have been prevented from maintaining a good staple diet. One thing that can be attributed from a lifestyle point of view is that in the west and developed countries, there has been a serious loss of staple food and required vegetables in the diet and there has been a major increase of meat and wine. Because of the use more technology cell phones have become a common thing amongst people, including teenagers, but one thing they do not know is using a cell phone over an hour increase the chances of having brain tumor as it emits high amount of radiation. Many people have contracted these tumors, but have failed to realize this that it was due to their lifestyle.Heart Attacks and diabetes which also are lifestyle diseases are the worst in the group as they have killed more people than even one can imagine. The following will cement the fact about arteriosclerosis and diabetes:  The WHO estimates that atherosclerosis (heart attacks and strokes) and diabetes (90% of the Type 2 variety) kill about 20 million people every year, more than are killed by war, famine, AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria combined, and more than might conceivably be killed in a single pandemic of bird flu. Bill Gates gives billions to trying to eliminate infectious disease but never mentions the really big killer, cardiovascular disease (CVD) in the form of atherosclerosis and hypertension or high blood pressure’ (Pandemic Lifestyle diseases 2007).Life style diseases can be treated too, but it takes it toll on the individual, and for instances of heart and all major by pass operations have to performed, or for cancer chemotherapy or amputation of the part is required.The best way is prevention of these diseases by changing our lifestyles. If we endorse certain amount of exercise and r ight amount of nutritious food then the chances of contracting these diseases go down by huge percentages. Fore mostly, it is very essential to keep a check on junk food and easy to make fried food. Apart from increasing cholesterol and obesity, these foods don’t help much. There has to be a steady intake of staple food with maintaining an equal balance of vegetables and meat. One has to make sure to complete a certain amount of exercise, be it a small run or doing exercises in the gym. This physical exercise will help increase the much needed blood circulation and in turn help people to live healthy.The high amount of work loads only worsens the living environment, as tensions give rise to many diseases. Those working always on tight deadlines suffer the most from it. The only way to counter it is to take time out to relax and practice mind reliving techniques which can be attained via yoga or reiki. The lesser the tension the more an individual can live longer and enjoy lif e.   Alcohol and smoking, which are considered to be very normal in today’s times, are one of the worst ways of affecting our body.Smoking contracts blood cells and can give lung cancer, along with dampening one’s stamina and appetite. Alcohol on the other hand makes one obese, addicted and also causes serious troubles in the liver and kidney region. If one can refrain from smoking and have very limited quantity of alcohol, then he reduces huge chances of getting diseases. The best part of lifestyle disease is it can be easily prevented with certain precautions. Everybody have to die in this world, but the choice of dying young due to lifestyle diseases or dying when you are old is a choice one has to make.Works Cited:1)    Eileen Salinsky, Principal Research Associate Wakina Scott, Research Associate â€Å"Obesity in America: A Growing Threat†, 11th July 2003, http://www.nhpf.org/pdfs_bp/BP_Obesity_7-03.pdf2)   Ã¢â‚¬Å"Pandemic of Lifestyle Diseases† , 14th October 2007, http://www.panaceia-or-hygeia.com/3)    http://naturalhealthperspective.com/home/civilization.html4)   http://www.obesityinamerica.org/geographic.html

A Look At Issue Of Homosexuality Religion Essay

A Look At Issue Of Homosexuality Religion Essay The response of the church to the issue of homosexuality is problematic; it is so because homosexuality now has become so evident and conspicuous. It is shocking how people are coming out in the open as being homosexual and how it is being discussed openly and even receives sympathy from some quarters in the church. The obvious fact is that it can no longer be ignored. In this paper I will discuss how the church in Africa should respond to this problem. ANALYSIS OF CONTROVERSY Homosexuality is a legal offence in most African countries, although in recent years there are attempts to legalize it in some countries, but it is legal in most American states. This is why it is a controversy to the Anglican Communion which is world wide. The definition of homosexuality according to Woods Jr (1968, p.135) â€Å"the word homosexual can be used to refer to various subtle gradations of erotic attraction or involvement between members of the same sex.† The moralist would dismiss moral obj ections on homosexuality basing on natural law, which they say natural law assumes that the structure of male and female genitals determine their function sexually. The early church also criticized same sex practices, for example Gagnon (2001,p.163) puts it very well that † Jews, like Greek and Roman critics of Homosexuality, rejected it on the ground that it was against nature, that is apart from the fact that the law forbade same-sex intercourse.† He says there are four reasons why only intercourse between male and female was considered to be in accordance with nature. The first he says is that there is no procreation in Homosexual intercourse and the second reason is that it is an affront to how God designed the male and female organs. The third reason is that there is no natural erotic passion in Homosexual sex says Gagnon and the last he says is that not even animals practice Homosexual intercourse. But some scholars would argue that apart from reproduction purposes , sex serves a number of functions. According to Woods Jr. (1968) â€Å"the judgment that sex is only for reproduction is as limited to an agrarian, low-population economy as the judgment that pearl are valuable is to a consumer economy.† The Lambeth conference resolution number 1.10 of 1998 states that in view of the teaching of scripture, that marriage should be between a man and a woman in a life long union, it recognized that there were persons who experienced themselves as having a homosexual orientation. Some of these people are church members and therefore need pastoral care, moral direction and God’s transforming power. The resolution was to listen to the experience of the homosexual persons and ensure them that God loves them. Although they called for the ministry of the pastoral care to all irrespective of sexual orientation, the resolution did not advise the legitimizing or blessing of the same sex union nor ordaining those in same gender union. Some would a rgue that in the Bible it is not clear what they meant by homosexuality. For example Bishop David Russell in his leaf let (page 3) wrote that the Biblical writers never ever contemplated the kind of homosexual that we are contemplating today, the Partnerships we are seeking to have affirmed in our time. I do not agree with him and others who think in these lines because the Bible is very clear on homosexuality. In Leviticus 20 :13, it is very clear that a man who has sexual relations with another man, both should be put to death because they have done repulsive thing. The other text, which condemns homosexuality in the New Testament, is Romans 1:26-27 and 1 Corinthians 6:9-10. it is therefore very clear that homosexuality is condemned in the Bible. If the homosexual of the Bible (Leviticus 20:13) is same as the homosexual of today, then homosexuality is an ancient form of sexual perversion.

The impact of Internal and External Business Environment on Essay

The impact of Internal and External Business Environment on organizational performance - Essay Example The paper has given an insight into the internal conditions of the organization and external environment, which contributes through elements of task environment. The paper has explored the internal environment in terms of the organizational culture, through focusing on the strengths and weaknesses of the organization. This section also focuses on the healthy and unhealthy aspects of the organization, ways through which the organization adapt to different conditions in the environment. The report also focused on the entrepreneurial aspect organization and their operations, whereby animals are used as metaphors. In the other section, the paper has conducted an environmental analysis of the conditions, by focusing on the characteristics of the environment. The next section has sought to determine the effects of the organization by focusing on the competitive forces through Porter’s Five Competitive Forces. The last section has focused on identifying ways in which an organization can adapt and respond to the influence of the environment. The recommendation of the report will focus on the things that an organization should concentrate on their environment through recurrent testing. The organizations are recommended to focus on the external environments in order to be in the position of acquiring loans from the bank and financial institutions. Other recommendations relate to focusing on the positive or negative impact of technology that can facilitate to increasing the level of productivity of the organization.

Thinking Through Religion Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Thinking Through Religion - Essay Example The assertion, "The unexamined life is not worth living", by Socrates is great for the clear-cut and straightforward message it gives. No ambiguity is involved, and it gives no scope for doubt. No purpose is served in the life of an individual, who is born and walks up to the grave! Every human being is endowed with an inner world to delve deep into it and to understand the real purpose of life and develop the technique to lead a spiritual life. The nobler instincts are more powerful than the desire that draws one to the secular comforts. The core desire of a human being is to search for meaning and purpose of life. The divine beauty of the inner world is the subject of practical experience. Wise men have written millions of pages about joy and happiness, but unless one crosses the barrier of mind and reaches the level of transcendence to enjoy the state of bliss, one’s life remains unexamined and it is the state of incompleteness. When one possesses the will to grow, not bein g satisfied with the state of status-quo, take it as the beginning of progress. The process of investigation is the continuous one and inner search means practical spirituality in which state every thought and action is positive and the individual visualizes divinity and unity in the working of the cosmos. He sees unity in diversity. Man’s search for meaning of life is the fundamental force of life and it is within everyone. With the procedure detailed in the sacred texts, the practical vision of divinity is attainable reality and that is the true purpose of life. To know the essence of human existence is the be all and end all of life. Each individual has to find the answer to his question, with investigation. Life is a continuous process of search of the unknown and the challenges on the path of investigation provide an opportunity for an individual to test his determination and will. Personal growth and spiritual growth are alternative beats of the same heart. Moreover, it is equally important to know that one's life happiness does not come from or depends on the other or though conditionings in the external world. Others can only contribute to trigger feelings, but an individual must search one’s own happiness. Thus, one's life is worth living when one remains involved in the process of self-examination in order to find true meaning and happiness of life. An unexamined life is not worth living. 2. Anthropic Principle means relating to human beings or their existence. Our existence on this Planet Earth depends on many cosmological considerations and even if a slight deviation in those factors would mean that we will not exist at all. The cosmos functions on countless alignments. The question arises, is it possible that such an arrangement exists merely by chance? Philosophers and the well-meaning scientists conclude that it is God who has that ultimate and immeasurable capacity and He has fine-tuned this Planet Earth for our existence. The rec ent advances in astronomy and physics have led the scientists to strongly conclude that there is ‘the soul at the heart of the universe’. This has led them to the process of self-examination and questions like: Who are we? Why are we here? What is God? For the first time in the known history of humankind, the contemporary scientists, theologians and mathematicians are likely to arrive on a common platform and their unanimous decision about the existence of God! â€Å"The Soul of the Universe†, is a remarkable program (video) on this fascinating and mind-boggling issue. I entirely agree with the anthropic principle and it goes in tandem with the spiritual truth. In fact, spirituality is the science of sciences. That which is not practical, and amenable to experiments, cannot be spiritual either. Consider the structure of protons. It has direct bearing on the livability of our Planet and consequently on the life of humankind. Some more examples that go to prove the

Education policy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Education policy - Essay Example Researches (Eagle, 1989; Henderson & Berla, 1994; U.S. Department of Education, 1994; Ziegler, 1987) confirm that when families are involved in their children's education, 'children earn higher grades and receive higher scores on tests, attend school more regularly, complete more homework, demonstrate more positive attitudes and behaviours, graduate from high school at higher rates, and are more likely to enrol in higher education than students with less involved families' (Hoover-Dempsey, K.V., & Sandler, H.M., 1997). So that, it's so important to involve parents in educational programmes of their children as an important goal for schools. Education here plays the major role, so that the child's education is a shared responsibility of the school and the home. At school he is said to be given knowledge common for the whole class and meant for the children of particular age taking into account their level of mental, physical and social development. At home parents can help their offshoots to solve the possible problems which can emerge at school; they can also help them to come through the adaptation process to the new surrounding and new system of communication successfully. 'Outside the school, the home is the most salient source of learning, encouragement and support for a child', notices Alison Rich (Rich, A., 2001). She also stresses upon the 'parental resources' which refers to 'income level, parental education and parental employment'. This is urgent because family income can increase educational opportunities of a child greatly by providing him with a bigger number of books and educational tools. Besides this, p arents with higher level of education tend to have children who are much interested in their self-improve and realization thus giving them much motivation for their finishing high school and continuing educational steps on higher levels. On the contrary, children from unemployed families tend to be backward in education and have smaller level of motivation for studying. All these facts stress upon the fact of importance of parental participation in their children's development process, educational process in particular, to set a good example for them. There also some factors that can be a rather positive impulse for children to like school and are eager to study. This is a notion of 'parental involvement in a child's education' that 'can be crucial in developing a child's academic ability and confidence' (Rich, A., 2001). Parents can actively participate in their child's school life, taking part in 'school committees, attending sporting and social events, attending parent teacher nights, volunteering and so on' (Rich, A., 2001). Doing this they show their great involvement into their children's life that gives their offshoots a sense of responsibility for their deeds and their progress in studies. Parents can also provide a suitable home environment for children to be ready for school, and to know that in case something goes wrong with their studies they can learn at home and improve their knowledge. Psychology deals with the notion of 'psychological readiness of a child for school'. This includes all the facts that influence a young person to be ready to face and to step into a new system of

The pity of war Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

The pity of war - Essay Example Owen’s poem reveals the sheer ridiculousness of arrogant militarism. While Gibson’s The Conscript is about the healers, the doctors who become so desensitized by war that they are not affected by even the most horrible sights that they come across. These poems make an excellent case against war; they remind us that war is a waste of precious lives and that it strips us of our humanity. Sassoon wrote The General after one of his close friends died. It is a very personal poem for him, and it questions the validity of the war. Many soldiers died in World War I due to the incompetence of those in charge and Sassoon wrote this poem decrying this very incompetence. The careless almost inhumane attitude of the general is seen as he is greeting his way through the line of his soldiers in a chirpy manner while most of them have died. His chirpy exuberance is misplaced when one considers the deaths of those under his command. The general, who most likely was safe in the back lines while his men followed his orders, does not even notice that there are many men missing – men who have died following his careless and irresponsible commands. As the men â€Å"slogged up to Arras† the city where the frontline was located throughout much of WWI, they end up blaming â€Å"his staff for incompetent swine† than place the responsibility on the General. Many a time, soldiers have to pay the price for the incompetence of their commandants, be they generals or not, and yet those in command are completely unaffected by the loss of life. In The Parable of the Old Man and the Young, Owen retells the Old Testament story of Abraham’s sacrifice, about how he, in obedience to a direct command from god, was willing to take the life of his only son, Isaac. He uses the characters but changes the ending. He uses Isaac as an analogy for the soldiers who are sacrificed, and Abraham as the old

B2C (Business to Consumer) case study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words

B2C (Business to Consumer) case study - Essay Example E-business provides communication between customers and organisations and they can exchange standard business transactions through online media (Yang & et. al., 2003). E-business in broad context can be stated as any business procedure that organisations carry out by computer networks, comprising internal and external communication flows. Through e-business, customers can make any transactions on the computer network, comprising transfer of proprietorship, or the right to use products and services. The transaction is performed within chosen e-business procedures and is considered to be completed upon agreement between purchasers and sellers regarding the use of products and services. Concerning the relationship between different participants, e-business can be classified into three categories namely B2C, B2B and C2C (Zakic & Mladenovic, 2011). Focusing on this aspect, the report describes a popular B2C application namely ‘Online Bookstore’ and its role in the respective industry. ... E-business opens the door to the notion of commercial activities without any border. Globally, it has also been observed that most popular products for online shopping are books, apparel and accessories (yStats, 2013). According to the report of Pitney Bowes (2013), online shopping is continuing to grow with e-business and is predicted to reach US$963 billion by 2013 in an international extent. The quickly expanding international digital community signifies a massive potential marketplace for any retail business with internet presence. Besides, the report of Pitney Bowes states that most common products which are purchased through internet are books, clothes and magazines. Wherein the overall market of physical books has declined, e-books sales have increased considerably. Indeed, popular e-book retailer Amazon has reported double-digit growth in the year 2011. The following figure demonstrates products purchased through internet in 2012. Fig 1: Products Purchased Through Internet So urce: (Pitney Bowes, 2013) From the above figure, it can be observed that online book shipping is regarded as the most popular item for a majority of online shoppers. According to the research of The Publishers Association, in the year 2012, the books sales in the United States were about ?3.3 billion, with 66% increase in online book sales. Online book sales represented about 12% of the total book sales in the United Kingdom (The Publishers Association, 2013). In the US, the revenue generated through book publishing had increased to about 3.1% in the year 2010 to a figure of US$27.9 billion. The percentage of sales of online book had increased to about 29.4 in 2009 and 38.9 in 2010 (German Book Office New York, 2010). According to the study of Nielsen (2010), books and

Report Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 13

Report - Essay Example The author, Klitzman, gives detailed information on the procedure that would help prevent passing on of the gene mutations (1). The author uses a critical language and calls for attention to the ethical and social issues surrounding the PGD. Additionally, the topic of the article is in the form of a question. It asks whether genetic testing of humans is playing God. This shows that Klitzman calls for attention to genetic testing of humans. The article is comprehensive and articulates numerous instances of the severity of Huntington disease and that of the pre-implantation genetic diagnosis procedure. The author articulates that Woody Guthrie succumbed to Huntington disease. He also notes that some people opt not to be tested because they fear getting a genetic test is similar to acquiring a death sentence. Additionally, the author also articulates how a woman he interviewed was afraid to know whether she had the Huntington disease. Though the woman wanted to safeguard her children against the disease, she was worried too that she would be playing with God. These examples have been used to emphasize on the criticality of the matter in discussion. Klitzman, Robert. "Opinion: Is genetic testing humans playing God? .com." CNN. CNN, 22  Feb.  2014. Web. 24  Feb.  2014. . This article details how the popularity of CNN, one of the biggest News Channel in the world, has gone down considerably because of reporting errors. According to the author, Carr, the biggest blow to CNN was the error report they gave on the defeat of President Obama’s health care law. However, many people still impulsively look to CNN when big news breaks. The broadcasting station also dealt a blow on its reputation after CNN’s correspondent King reported that a suspect had been arrested, which later turned out to be false (Carr 1). The article also

Symposium, by Plato Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Symposium, by Plato - Essay Example In fact, write-ups on this subject are among the iconic literature ever written. The concept of Eros emanates from a Greek word locus classicus and the agape love has been enjoined by the human understanding of love. This has become the source of much creative literature on this subject the world over, especially in the western countries. In fact, for the westerners have got two conceptions on this subject. An example is that they there are those who believe in the combination of Eros and agape love, whereas, the rest are staunch Christians who strongly believe in Jesus teachings (Cooksey, 144). The former school of thought though criticized on the ground that it is self-centered and weird in some manner. This notwithstanding, many people across the globe have embraced it because of the urge to explore more on this exciting topic. This subject requires much discretion in its presentations hence is has been associated with the discipline of philosophy. It is because of its nature that only poets have managed to explore it. However, in as much as love is subject to philosophical analysis, it differs from the latter. The view of Eros love has its genesis in the past traditional setting. It is easy to fathom and appreciate the credibility of the premises of this view on love from this angle of view. Indeed love is a feeling of power, authority and security. In addition, Eros love is a controversy because when a person possesses love, there is no contemplation of hate yet there can not be hate if love never existed (Cooksey, 144).. There can be no good thing without the involvement of love. In erotic view, reason directs the desires of the body In that without reason man becomes irrational. In this case, the soul is not involved in directing the actions of the body though self constitutes of the body, soul and mind. However in the Christian view has it that the body should be controlled by the mind and soul too. Inn addition love is something that gives people satis faction. For instance person would ordinarily love another and feel shameful and uneasy about it. Moreover, people prefer the whole world to know about their sense of love. Indeed this is the cause as to why several men and women indulge in weddings .this brings to them the reassurance of love from their partners otherwise their love shall remain not rekindled. Love has for a long time transformed people for the better. It is true that it is love alone which makes people abandon vices and embrace virtues and moral values of the society. For instance, a wife or husband are restrained from committing promiscuity by love between themselves.However, it is ironical that it is the same love that reconciles husband and wife again, In case either of the two partners falls victim of adultery. 2 Love compels a person to make sacrifices which even blood relative will at no time make. It builds the character of a person. For instance when a person is in a relationship, there is a dramatic chang e of manners and lifestyle. It is love which makes the other partner to have restraint in order to avoid hurting the other person by his or her unpleasant lifestyle or character. It is quite interesting that even justice springs forth from love (Cooksey, 144). This is absolute truth because it is lack of love that culminates in the commission of rime and other evils. For instance if a person has love, it will be difficult for the person to give or accept a bribe as

African American Women in Hollywood Essay Example for Free

African American Women in Hollywood Essay In early film many African American actresses portrayed roles as mammies, slaves, seductresses, and maids. These roles suppressed them not allowing them to show their true talents. Although they had to take on these degrading roles, they still performed with dignity, elegance, grace and style. They paved the way for many actresses to follow both blacks and whites. These women showed the film industry that they were more than slaves, mammies, and maids. These beautiful actresses showed the film industry that they are able to hold lead parts and even carry the whole cast if need be. Phenomenal actresses such as Hattie McDaniels, Pearl Bailey, Ethel Waters, Nina Mae McKinney, and Dorothy Dandridge, to name a few, are African-American stars who paved the way for so many African-American actresses today despite the hardships that they were faced with. These women displayed beauty, intellect and talent, which allowed the stars that followed that they do not have to just settle for stereotypical roles. In early film there was much propaganda and even today, which lead to these demeaning roles that they had to betray, Professor Carol. Penney of Yale-New Haven writes, Film is one of the most influential means of communication and a powerful medium of propaganda. Race and representation is central to the study of the black film actor, since the major studios reflected and reinforced the racism of their times. The depiction of blacks in Hollywood movies reinforced many of the prejudices of the white majority rather than objective reality, limiting black actors to stereotypical roles (1). Hattie McDaniels, a trailblazer amongst African-American film, acquired many firsts for African-American actors. McDaniels was the first African-American to sing on the radio, first to receive an Oscar for best supporting actress in Gone with the Wind. She was also the first African-American to star in a sitcom in 1951 that featured an African-American actress in the title role (Pax 1). McDaniels appeared in more than three hundred films during the twenties and thirties. Her career was built on the ? Mammy image, a role she played with dignity (Smith 7). She received much flack from the blacks because of the roles she played in film and on radio. Blacks felt that she was degrading the race but her reply was to these views were, Hell Id rather play a maid than be one (Encyclopedia of World Biography 406). After her acclaim role as Mammy in Gone With the Wind, McDaniels was never paid anything less than $31,000 for a performance. This was much for an African-American as well as a white entertainer. Even though she broke that barrier McDaniel was still oppressed by racism not only on film, but also off film. She was faced with racial legal problems when trying to acquire a home in Los Angeles. At that time there was a limited black land and home ownership right. Though she won the suite she still was subjected to racial hostility from her neighbors. McDaniels experience oppressions of many types during her career, but she continued to take the mammy roles but played them with dignity and respect. In spite of her being the mammy, McDaniels made sure that her characters had the upper hand. After McDaniels death the mammy roles died with her. Pearl Bailey, the Ambassador of Love career took off on Washingtons U street at the age of fifteen years of age. She started off as a singer and appeared in many nightclubs. In the mid-30s she performed with the Noble Sissles Band in the Village Vanguard and Blue Angel Club. In the 40s she was the lead singer for Count Basie, Cab Calloway and Cootie Williams. She debuted on Broadway in St. Louis Blue; she won honors for as Broadways best newcomer. After her debut on Broadway films she performed in Variety Girl, Isnt It Romantic, Carmen Jones, and Porgy and Bess. In 1967 she won a Tony Award for heading the all-black cast of Hello Dolly! A role that allowed her, she said, ?to sing, dance, say intelligent words on stage, love and be loved and deliver what God gave me? and Im dressed up besides'(Black History: Virginia Profiles 1). Hello Dolly! allowed Bailey to be beautiful. Former President Ronald Reagan awarded Bailey was with the Medal of Freedom in 1988. She was also a special delegate to the United Nations under Ford, Reagan and Bush. While in her sixties Bailey went back to college and received her degree in theology from Georgetown University (2). Ethel Waters, Sweet Mama Stringbean, started her career in Vaudeville and nightclubs. In the 1921 Waters performed her first debut album The New York Glide and At the New Jump Steady Bump. In the mid-twenties she was coined as a pop singer (Red Hot Jazz 1). On stage she was in successful productions of Africana, Blackbird of the 1930, Rhapsody in Black, and Cabin in the Sky (Penney 8). She also starred in Pinky in 1949 this was a message film on racism. Waters did not receive recognition for her work until she portrayed Berenice Sadie Brown in The Member of The Wedding. The Member of the Wedding was more than simply a movie. It was very important repects a motion-picture event. Foremost, it marked the first time a black actress was used to carry a major-studio white production. Secondly, the movie was another comeback for Ethel Waters. Her autobiography, His Eye Is On The Sparrow? she told all the lurid details of her life the turbulent events in the autobiography convinced patrons that Ethel Waters, who always portrayed long-suffering women, was indeed the characters she played? Now patrons rooted for her to succeed? to triumph(8). During Waterss career she was nominated for an Oscar best supporting actress in the film Pinky. She also received the New York Drama Critics Award for best actress. Ethel Waterss last performance was in the film The Sound and the Fury in 1959. She continued singing and touring with evangelist Billy Graham until her death in 1977 (Red Hot Jazz 1). Nina May McKinney was the screens first black goddess (Penney 3). She was the first black actor in the film to be recognized as a potential mainstream star (7). McKinney was also the most successful African-American actress in the 1920s and 1930s (South Carolina African American History Online 1). McKinneys career started as a New York City nightclub dancer and later received a role in Lew Leslies Blackbird Revue. In 1929, King Vidor, of MGM Studios, casted McKinney as Chick, a promiscuous young woman in Hallelujah. In the famous cabaret scene McKinney, as Chick, danced a sensuous dance which has been copied by leading lady Lena Horne in Cabin in the Sky to Lola Falana in The Liberation of L. B. Jones (Penney 7). In Hallelujah, Chick represented the black woman as an exotic sex object, half woman, half child. She was the black woman out of control of her emotions, split in two by her loyalty and her own vulnerabilities. Implied throughout the battle with self was the tragic mulatto theme? In this stereotypical concept the white half of her represented the spiritual; the black half-animalistic (7). Hallelujah was considered the ace of all-black pictures? The film had a strong plot, but unfortunately the message was? blacks should stay in their place. Though McKinney received much praise for her role as Chick she did not generate leading roles in the American film industry. She was relegated to assuming routine black characters or to partaking in independently produced, low budget all black movies, as was the pattern for most of the outstanding African-American actors and actresses of the era? McKinney acted in a few other films in the 1940s. Her most notable role was in Pinky. McKinney was also a stage actress and performed at the famous Apollo Theatre in Harlem. Barred from opportunities and stardom in Hollywood, she soon departed the United States and took her great talents to Europe? in Greece she was known as the Black Garbo? she also starred with the great actor Paul Robeson in the film Sanders of the River (South Carolina 2). Later in McKinneys life the great star returned to the States and died in New York City in 1967. Dorothy Dandridge is amongst Hollywoods beauties in the 1940s and 1950s. Though she receives much recognition today as the most beautiful and talented actresses of her time, but at that time she was seen as just another Black actress. Followed in the footsteps of the great Nina Ma McKinney, though they possessed the beauty and the charisma as other female actresses of their time their color was still seen first. Like many actors and actresses of her time Dandridge career went through many highs and lows because of her race. Dandridges career began as a singer with her sister Vivian, they were known as the Wonder Children and later the group became a trio by the name the Dandridge Sisters. She played in many movies in the 1940s such as: Yes Indeed, Sing for My Supper, Jungle Jig, Easy Street, Cow Cow Boogie, and Paper Dolls to name a few. She was not recognized until her performance as Carmen in Carmen Jones. Her co-stars were Harry Belafonte, Pearl Bailey and Diahann Caroll. She was the first Black to be nominated for an Oscar for best actress (African-American Almanac 248). Dandridges role as Carmen lead to more opportunities for African-Americans in films. Dandridge was the first African-American woman to be held in the arms of a white man in the film, Island in the Sun. She was also the first African-American to have an interracial kiss in The Decks Ran Red (Pioneer Actress 2). Though the film Carmen Jones allowed Dandridge to have a lead role she the character was the stereotypical mulatto woman with a high sex drive and filled with deceit. Penney writes, The irony that overshadowed Dandridges career was that although the image she marketed appeared to be contemporary and daring, at heart it was based on an old classic type, the tragic mulatto. In her important films Dorothy Dandridge portrayed doomed, unfilled women. Nervous and vulnerable, they always battled with the duality of their personalities. As such, they answered the demands of their times. Dorothy Dandridges characters brought to a dispirited nuclear age a razor-sharp sense of desperation that cut through the bleak monotony of the day. Eventually- and here lay the final irony- she may have been forced to live out a screen image that destroyed her (10). Dorothy Dandridge broke many barriers during her career. She opened the doors for black romance in films. She crossed over the racial lines with interracial relationships on and off screen. Later in Dandridges career she found it hard to get work. She filed for bankruptcy and later committed suicide. Dandridge made it possible for African-American women to be seen as beautiful and not exotic and sexual. In conclusion, many African-Americans actresses were blackballed by the industry. They were not able to achieve the success that they were entitled to because of the era that they were living in. These stars were oppressed because of the color of their skin and not because they did not possess talent. They were limited to roles that did not allow them to be the damsels or have leading roles. And if they were cast as the lead the film stereotyped the Blacks as shiftless, deceitful, or ignorant. These are just a few of the great African-American women in film that made it easier for African-American women to get into the industry. Though today African-American people are still seen shiftless, drug addicts, gang bangers, killers, whores, and criminals, but now they have more access to the industry because now African- Americans are able to write and direct films that depict them in a better light. Film today has changed for the past from mammies. Now African-American women are teachers, doctors, lawyers, business tycoons and what have you. Yet, they are still oppressed because they are only able to produce what the movie studios say that they can produce. Today there are films like Soul Food, Love and Basketball, Rosewood, Bamboozled, and many more that have messages and have African-American women in lead roles and not being in the background. These great stars allowed Black girls to see their own kind on a big screen and feel that they are beautiful too. Work Cited The African-American Almanac, 1997. Detroit: Gale Research, 1997. Encyclopedia of World Biography. Vol. 1016. Detroit: Gale Research, 1987. Ethel Waters. Online. 10 March 2005. Available: www. http://www. redhot jazz. com/waters. html. Honoring Black History Month. Pax Stars. Online. 10 March 2005. Available: www. http://www. pax. tv/bios/one-bio. cfm/hattie-mcdaniel. Nina Mae McKinney. South Carolina African American History Online. Online. 11 March 2005. Available: www. http://www.scafam-hist. org/aahc/. Pearl Bailey. Black History: Virginia Profiles. Online. 13 March 2005. Available:www. http://www. gatewayva. com/pages/bhistory/1996/bailey. shtml. Penney, Carol. Black Actors inamerican Cinema. Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute. Online. 12 March 2000. Available: www. http://www. yale. edu/ynhti/cirriculm/units. Pioneer black actress Dorothy Dandridge has a famous cast of modern-day admirers. Online. 12 March 2005. Available: www. http://ohio. com/bj/fun/tv/0299/002827htm.

What Extent Is English A Global Language?

What Extent Is English A Global Language? There are numerous different languages are being used throughout the world. Since there are too many different languages, a global language is produced. A language can achieve this status only when it is important to the world activities such as communication between countries, trading between different countries across the world and culture. It plays an important role and it is recognized by every country (Crystal, 2003). Crystal (2003) reports that English has already reached this stage and there are nearly a quarter of the worlds population around 1.2 to 1.5 billion people is already know and use English. Nowadays, English is the most widely spoken language in the world. English has become a global language not because of it is both easy to learn and is superior to other language but it has strong power base. The thesis of this essay is divided into a few parts, first look at what is a global language and what makes a language global then why English become a global language. Global language means a language which is using around the world and it is important to the world operation and influencing the domains of the human activity in the world. For example, global language is usually uses to write songs, use to trading throughout the world and communication between countries in the world. Global language is important to the world operation and a global language is needed in the world. A language has two mains ways to become global. It can be an official language and foreign language of countries. Official language means a language which wildly used as medium of communication, such as media, the domains as government and the education system (Crystal, 2003). It also can be the first language of few countries. Crystal (2003) claims that a language can have a global status when it is used by other countries around the world. Since a language cannot become global only use by itself. Foreign language means a language teaching in school which has no official status. A mother-tongue language becomes the foreign language and the official language is the step to make the language become global since a language cannot have a global status when it is not taken by the other countries. And English has finished the step to become an international language. English has become an international language not because it is easy to learn. There is no language is easy to learn and better, the difficulty of a language is depend on different learner and Lutz (2010) points that it depends on which level of the learner want to achieve, the higher level, the more difficult. Ellis (1985) says that age, aptitude, cognitive style, motivation and personalities are the five main aspects which separate individual learner differences in a different level. This means the difficulty of language are depends on learner. Ellis (1985) reports that aptitude is a main factor to divides the language learner to different level. If a learner has a good aptitude and a effective way to study a second language, the language will become easier. Learner motivation also is a important factor that make a learner learn a second language success. A learner can likely learn a second language to be success when the motivation is high. Crystal (2003) reports that the intrinsic structural properties, the size of its vocabulary or it has been a vehicle of a great literature in the past or it was once associated with a great culture or religion are the motivation of some learner to learn a language but not the reasons make the language become global. English has become an international language also not because it is superior to other language. Crystal (2003) says that there are many people claim that a language can become global because its sense beauty, clear expression or religious standing and these are the misleading beliefs. Language can become a global language not because the beauty of the language and the number of people who speak it but who speak the language. There are some properties of English makes it become global appealing but the characteristics of the language are not the main reason to be worth to learn but the relative importance between the language characteristics and the internationally value. This make a language be more appealing but not superior to the other languages. English may be more appealing than other languages but not superior to languages. Crystal (2003) says that language can become a global language not because the beauty of the language and the number of people who speak it but who speak the language. English can become a world language mainly because of the strong military power and economic power. Crystal (2003) shows that a language cannot become global without strong power-bases, such as political power, military power and economic power. These are the dominance of the language which makes a language become global. The military power is the main reason to make a language become a global language. When a country has a strong military power, the others need to listen to the language spoken by the people in that country. Which means it makes that language is used in many countries. Between the world war two, Britain set up a lot of colonies. English became the official language and foreign language of the colonies. This is very important to be the official language and foreign language of the colonies because it is a important step to make a language become global. English must be taken by others countries to become global because a language cannot become global when it is only use by the countries which English is the mother-tongue. So English become the official language and foreign language of the colonies becomes the base of English to become a global language. an economic power is still needed to maintain and expand the status of the language. Economically power became a main aspect which maintain and expand the status in the start of twentieth century. The economic start to growth and develop around the world and there are many new markets were born. There were many new technology are invent. Communication between countries is needed to develop the economic and market. Country has a stronger economically power, the first language of that country will become more important and it can maintain it longer and expand it to larger through the economy. Crystal (2003) claims that Britain had be come the worlds headmost industrial and trading country at the beginning of the nineteenth century. The growth of economy of the English is the fastest in the world. These built the foundation of English in the world through the colonies and the economy. These are the two mains reasons to give English a global status. In conclusion, English has become an international language is not because it is both easy to learn and is superior to other language because there is no language is superior to other language and the difficultly of a language is depend on the individual learner differences. The reasons why English can become a global language because the military and the economic power of the countries which speak English And English was in the right place at the right time. (Crystal, 2003:7-10) English set up the base to the world through out the world by Britain colonies. English is also maintained and expended by the economically power and military power of Britain and USA. That the reason why English can become the global language and why English can still be the global language until now. (1262 words)

Neurotransmitter Serotonin Cause Depression Psychology Essay

Neurotransmitter Serotonin Cause Depression Psychology Essay According to the World Health Organization, about 121 million people across the globe suffer from depression and the WHO has ranked depression as fourth in a list of most urgent problems worldwide (2). It is the most prevalent psychiatric disorder and is responsible for nearly 850,000 deaths every year. Supporting this fact, statistics have revealed that the use of anti-depressants has soared over 400 percent in the past two decades (3). According to Kresser, a licensed acupuncturist and practitioner of integrative medicine, several chemically distinct anti-depressants marketed under trade names such as Prozac, Zoloft, and Paxil now enjoy immense popularity as anti-depressants (4). Amongst the four classes of anti-depressant medication, namely selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), atypical depressants, tricyclic anti-depressants (TCAs) and monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs), SSRIs have been the most widely prescribed medication by physicians. In this essay, the terms S SRI and anti-depressant will be used interchangeably. The current model of SSRIs assumes that a low level of extracellular neurotransmitter, serotonin, is primarily responsible for depression. Serotonin in our body can be found in two places 80 percent of it in our gastrointestinal tract while the rest in our brain (5). The 80 percent of serotonin function as hormones and they play a role in muscular contractions whereas the 20 percent act as a neurotransmitter in our brain (6). In our brain there are many cells called neurons, which are separated by small gaps. Messages carried by neurotransmitters are delivered from one neuron to another across the gaps. These messages come in the form of chemical impulses, and contain information about mood, behaviour, body temperature, appetite and sleep. Once a neurotransmitter leaves the sending neuron, it will latch onto the receiving neuron and relay chemical impulses over. Then the neurotransmitter returns to its sending neuron to be re-used again this process is called reuptake. On the other hand, if there are inadequate amounts of neurotransmitters, the next impulse does not fire off and messages will not be relayed. (7) SSRIs work to block or slow down the reuptake of serotonin in particular, hence increasing the amount of extracellular serotonin. As a result, more serotonin are present in the gaps which will increase rate of successful transmission of impulses to the receiving neuron. SSRI is hence engineered on the belief that serotonin is the cause of depression. However ever since the advent of the drug and its side-effects exposed, drug researchers are compelled to re-investigate the efficacy of SSRIs, in which confounding results were revealed. The investigation into the serotonin-depression link will not only prevent doctors making inappropriate prescriptions that may not be in the best interest of their patients health, it also allows a clearer definition of the causes of depression. Ultimately, establishing the proper function of serotonin may lead to a ground-breaking change in the methodology of treating depression and related disorders in the psychiatric and pharmacology world. While most people concur with the belief that a deficiency of serotonin is related to depression, some argue that an imbalance in serotonin levels leads to depression. This imbalance theory arises because of the widespread notion that SSRIs are only effective for patients with moderate to severe depression while it is ineffective for mildly depressed patients. The basis of the debate surrounding the efficacy of SSRIs in fact boils down to a deeper problem whether or not the neurotransmitter, serotonin, is related to depression at all. Nevertheless, I oppose both claims of the serotonin-depression link and contest that there is no coherence between levels of serotonin and depression. Up till now, there have no substantial evidence that depression is caused by serotonin deficiency, neither is there one that shows that over stimulation of serotonin causes depression. Efficacy of SSRIs challenged by small drug-placebo difference Many studies have shown that the efficacy of SSRI drugs in the treatment of depression is challenged by low drug-placebo difference scores. Studies to investigate the efficacy of anti-depressants by giving placebos to a controlled group have revealed that the recovery rate of patients who took a glucose pill was equivalent to patients who consumed the anti-depression drug (8). A 2008 meta analysis of the efficacy of SSRIs that was published by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), revealed that these anti-depressants have no clinically significant edge over all placebos. By this, it means that it did not meet the drug licensing authority, UK National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) standards. As evident in the meta analysis, the placebo response groups account for up to 75 percent of all positive effects of anti-depressant medication (9) which shows that 3 in 4 of all patients who reported an increase in heightened emotional well-being were actually consuming sugar pills. O ther studies yielded similar results a study by Khan et al. found a 10 percent difference in level of symptoms when patients consume the inert placebos compared to the active drugs in two separate meta-analyses (10). As the drug-placebo difference is small, it can be seen that regardless of whether SSRI is administered or not, symptoms of depression are still greatly reduced. This implies that serotonin level may not be related to depression at all. Opponents argue that experiments to test the efficacy of SSRIs against inert placebos may not be accurate because the side effects of SSRIs are not mimicked. They claim that commonly known side effects of SSRIs, such as diarrhoea, nausea, dizziness, headaches or even gastrointestinal bleeding (11) may affect patients mood, which in turn underrate the impact of serotonin in lifting depression. This claim is however rejected by many scientific literatures which show counter-evidences. According to Joanna Moncrieff, the co-chair person of Critical Psychiatry Network, when she used active placebos to simulate the adverse-effects of SSRIs in anti-depressant drug trials, results revealed that differences between active placebo and SSRI were significantly small (12). To measure severity of depression before and after the drug trials, the conventional Hamilton Rating Scale of Depression (HRSD) was used. Since it did not meet NICE standards of an improvement in rating score of 3 points to be defined as clinically significant (8), the above studies involving inert and active placebos clearly show that no matter which placebo type was administered active or inert, drug versus placebo significance in anti-depressant efficacy is clinically insignificant. Whether or not the level of serotonin is increased, patients reported a reduction in symptoms of depression, therefore there is little evidence to say that a lack of this neurotransmitter causes depression. Another common belief by proponents of anti-depressants is that initial severity of depression is directly related to the effectiveness of SSRIs, that SSRIs work best for patients with very severe depression. It is thought that over stimulation of serotonin may cause further chemical imbalance in patients suffering from mild depression, hence rendering SSRIs ineffective (13). Thus in order to test this claim, Kirsch et al moved on to investigate whether initial severity of depression affects the efficacy of anti-depressants. He tested on the hypothesis that anti-depressants work only for people suffering from moderate to major depression. In this double-blinded study of 35 clinical trials involving 5,133 subjects, both drug administers and subjects were unknown to results of randomized medication (placebo or SSRI) to prevent sampling biasness and subjects severity of depression was measured by HRSD (14). The test was conducted to see if there is an improvement in the subjects depress ion, measured against their baseline severity and the final conclusion is as follows: patients with an initial moderate depression did not report a drug-placebo difference, patients with an initial severe depression reported a relatively small drug-placebo difference and only for patients situated at the upper end of very severe depression category did the drug-placebo difference fall into the clinically significant criterion by NICE standards (8). Although effectiveness of SSRIs may seem to improve with the severity of depression, further research has revealed a negative coherence between severity and placebo response. As highlighted from Figure 1, the drug-placebo difference reached clinical standards for people with a higher initial severity of depression. Further analysis shows that a higher drug-placebo difference is due to a decrease in improvement of the placebo group rather than due to the effects of SSRIs. Figure 1. Mean Standardized Improvement as a Function of Initial Severity and Treatment Group, Including Only Trials Whose Samples Had High Initial Severity graph.png Source: http://www.plosmedicine.org/article/fetchObject.action?uri=info:doi/10.1371/journal.pmed.0050045.g003representation=PNG_M This implies that the increased benefit for extremely depressed patients seems attributable to a response-deficiency to placebos rather than a heightened response to SSRI medication. Therefore efficacy of SSRI does not increase with severity of depression and increasing amount of serotonin did not work for patients with all levels of depression. Since SSRIs are designed to alleviate depression by inhibiting the reuptake of serotonin in our brain cells, it shows that there is no relationship between extracellular serotonin and ones mood. Furthermore, it usually take weeks before effects of anti-depressants are expressed and can be measured by testing for serotonin levels in the blood, yet patients often report relief within hours or days of medication. Therefore this phenomenon demonstrates the lack of correlation between serotonin and depression and gives support to the placebo effect. The lack in correlation is further evidenced by the results of a Force Swim Test (FST). FST, also known as the behavioural despair test, is a conventional anti-depressant screening test which involves using rodents as test subjects. In this test, rats are dropped in an enclosed water cylinder and their movements observed. The struggling time of rats is measured based on the assumption that immobility of rats is directly proportional to their state of depression. For example depressed rats will cease trying and float in the cylinder, which is akin to despair, whereas non-depressed rats will continue to struggle in search of a way out (15). Although it is thought that SSRIs should extend struggling time of rats, final results were inconsistent hence inconclusive (16). The administration of SSRIs in rodents did not make them less susceptible to depression, displaying no direct relationship between serotonin and depression. Nonetheless, it should be noted that experiments done on mice ma y not be entirely accurate in predicting responses in humans (17). The bold assumption made by researchers The serotonin-depression link came about when scientists first discovered that in most depressed patients, the level of serotonin is comparably lower than that in non-depressed people. The amount of serotonin in a humans body was measured by comparing blood samples taken from depressed and healthy people. Subsequently the anti-depressant SSRI was invented, which targets the neurotransmitter serotonin and works to stimulate the production of it. This methodology then raises a few doubts. Firstly, the assumption that blood serotonin and brain serotonin are directly proportional can be contested as it is certainly impossible to measure the amount of serotonin in the brain. Patients who have high levels of serotonin in the blood may have low levels of serotonin in the brain and vice versa. As mentioned earlier, 80 percent of the humans body total serotonin is found in our bloodstream and the rest in the brain. While the level of blood serotonin can be measured, current biomedical technol ogy has yet to transcend the brain barrier. In all clinical trials involving SSRIs, the assumption made is that blood serotonin reflects brain serotonin, which is a very bold one to make. This then creates a paradox in research methodology: the reason for inventing SSRIs instead of feeding serotonin directly to a humans body is due to the blood-brain barrier. Orally ingested serotonin are ineffective as they do not pass through bloodstreams into the brain, that is the digestive system is unparallel to the central nervous system. Whereas SSRIs work because they merely seek to enhance an impulse that is already present, but too feeble to cross the gap. Yet scientists conveniently established a link between serotonin and depression by measuring serotonin in patients blood. It is reasonable to say that since blood serotonin is not proven to be a clear indication of brain serotonin, any positive outcomes of anti-depressant drug trials may not be due to the increase in brain serotonin bu t other unknown factors. This again shows a lack of tangible evidence between the neurotransmitter, serotonin, and depression. Secondly, in all probability that there is a direct attestation of serotonin deficiency in any mental disorder lacking, it is still unclear whether low levels of serotonin causes depression or depression causes a dip in serotonin. Evidences supporting the latter can be based on observations of non-depressed people with low amounts of serotonin. In a 1996 investigation of the biochemistry of depression, attempts made to induce depression by reducing serotonin levels yielded no consistent results (18). Similarly, researchers found that a surge in brain serotonin, arrived at by administering SSRIs, were ineffective at alleviating depression (19). Therefore there is little evidence to support serotonin as a mood chemical. Also problematic for the serotonin-depression claim is the expanding field of research comparing SSRIs to other anti-depression drugs that do not target serotonin specifically (20). For instance, the atypical anti-depressant buproprion (21) and St. Johns Wort (22), which do not alter the level of serotonin were proven to be just as effective as SSRIs in the treatment for depression. Therefore doubts about the serotonin-depression link are acknowledged by many researchers as well as by advocates of SSRIs (23). To supplement my stand, serotonin is not listed as the cause of depression disorder in the  Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (24). The American Psychiatric Press Textbook of Clinical Psychiatry (25) also reiterates that serotonin deficiency as an unconfirmed hypothesis (20). In short, there exists no rigorous corroboration of the serotonin theory, which may suggest the reliability of positive drug trials published by drug companies. Conclusion In addition to what textbooks have to say about serotonin, it is important to look at what not being said in scientific literature. There are numerous peer-reviewed articles supporting the disconnect between serotonin and depression however not a single one can be precisely cited to directly endorse claims of a serotonin deficiency in any mental disorders (20). Assuming that blood serotonin is a good measure for brain serotonin, abundant evidences of high placebo significance in anti-depressant drug trials, the rejection of the claim that efficacy of SSRIs depends on severity of depression, and an inconsistent Force Swim Test results indicate that serotonin may not be the cause of depression. No doubt there may be a positive outcomes from the drug trials, however because blood serotonin may not reflect brain serotonin, these outcomes coupled with the above mentioned proofs against the serotonin hypothesis strongly suggest that other factors are involved in depression. The incongruenc e between the scientific literature and the claims made by proponents are prominent, hence I stand for the fact that there is no direct correlation between serotonin level and depression.

Winston Churchill :: Biography

Winston Churchill One of the most famous and loved men on the allied power side was Winston Churchill. Winston Churchill’s full name was Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill. He was born at Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire, England on November 30, 1874. Churchill was the oldest son. His father was Lord Randolph Churchill and Winston, like his father, was British. Mr. Churchill was a statesman, a soldier, an author, and a journalist but the one job that he did best and was most important was Prime Minister. A Prime Minister was very responsible for war aspects, or things that go on during the war. Churchill, being Prime Minister in 1940, was good for England because he was a very confident person so he kept his people’s hopes up. Winston made sure that military aid on the allied power side was secure. In return, he got moral support from the United States. Churchill traveled around the world a lot to meet with other leaders and befriended them. Together they made up a strategy that defeated Adolf Hitler. By the end of World War II Churchill and the allied powers had defeated the axis powers. When people saw Churchill walk down the street they felt confident. This is because they saw their hero, Winston Churchill, walk with a big cigar in his mouth. But the one thing that they really liked about him was that he made his hands in the shape of a V for victory. Winston was Prime Minister from 1940 to 1945. The Labour party defeated him in 1945. The party stayed in power until 1951. This was when Winston Churchill regained power again. He stayed in power until April 1955, when ill health came his way and forced him to resign.

Traffic Signal/Road Marking Detection and Processing :: Driving Traffic Signals Argumentative Essays

Traffic Signal/Road Marking Detection and Processing Humans have visual cues that they naturally use to perceive their motion through the environment. There are numerous human factors that are associated with being able to navigate a vehicle safely while adhering to signal lights, signs and other traffic road markings. There needs to be vast improvement in the way that information is presented to drivers for many reasons. One example is that the placing of the sun during a particular part of the day prohibits one from distinguishing whether a traffic light is green or red. The elderly have difficulties reading certain signs or differentiating among the color of signal lights, even with their glasses on. Most everyone has less visual acuity at night and certain road markings or traffic lights are harder to perceive. Color blind people canÕt always tell the difference between a red light and a green light, and they may also have a hard time seeing brake lights, blinkers, etc. All of the situations mentioned above can lead to serious fatal accidents. Extensive research in this area has been conducted for many years and is still going on today. Driving is a complex task which involves a variety of interactive parallel and serial processes that depend on various visual functions. Vision plays a vital role in safe, proficient driving even though there are other sensory and motor systems that are used in driving. It has been estimated that 90% of the information used in driving is visual and that visual information alone might be sufficient for safe driving (Fox, 1997). Beyond these general statements, it has been difficult to determine what specific visual skills are used for driving that are important. Safe and efficient driving is Òa matter of perceptual-motor sensitivity to perceptual laws of locomotion in a spatiotemporal fieldÓ (Fox, 1997). Specifically, the driver must be aware of two fields: (1) the field of safe travel and (2) the minimum stopping zone. The field of safe travel refers to a field surrounded by actual and potential obstacles to locomotion. The minimum stopping zone refers to a field that is determined by variables like speed, visual/road conditions, etc. Car crashes occur when another car or stationary object is not perceived accurately. In order to guide a vehicle, the driver must (1) abstract important sensory information from the environment, (2) process this information accordingly to complete visuospatial tasks and (3) act accordingly to achieve task goals.

The Cold War :: essays research papers

Harry Truman was the 33rd President of the United States from about the end of World War 2 and from the beginning of the Cold War in 1945 until he retired in January, 1952. Harry Truman was born in 1884, in Missouri. In April 1945 Truman assumed office as the President on the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt. From the 16th of July to the 2nd of August the Potsdam conference was held in Potsdam, Berlin. Truman and Stalin and Churchill attended the conference until Churchill was beaten in an election by Atlee and replaced. Truman was worried about this encounter with Stalin as he was not very well informed on him, as Roosevelt had not involved him in political issues therefore he lacked the knowledge on how to handle Stalin. The main issue at the conference was on Germany. They established the principle occupations, which were to de-nazify,de-militerise, de-centeralise de-industrialise and democrasise all of Germany. Germany’s reparations were decided. They also established that Germany’s future would be jointly worked out, no separate development without consultation of forgien ministers. Also at Potsdam the Polish borders were defined, and Russia agreed entry to the Pacific War. Truman distrusted the Russians before the conference and by the end of the conference in August Truman had developed an even larger distrust towards Russia. He felt the Russians had been given too much at Yalta and he was adopting a harder attitude. He also felt that with the power he held with the Atomic bomb, USSR were under control. The relationship between the superpwers worsened considerably at Potsdam. On the 6th of August 1945 Truman authorised an Atomic bomb to be dropped on Hiroshima, a city in Japan and another in Nagasaki, two days later, they caused horrendous damage, and many thousands of people died. After the bombs were dropped US troops occupied Japan not allowing any other forces in. Truman had told Stalin little about the bomb, first informing him at Potsdam and when he authorised the drop, he had not consulted or warned Stalin, this angered him as he had wanted to gain some Japanese territory before the end of the war and the tension began to build. The rise of two new â€Å"superpowers†developed after the war, the USA and the USSR, both wanting to be the more powerful nation. There was a rising tension between Truman and Stalin, as Truman had a different attitude to the USSR and Stalin than Roosevelt had previously.

Comparison Between Tod Homer and Miss Lonely Hearts

Tod, Homer, and Miss Lonelyhearts Another Well Thought Out Essay Tod Hackett, Homer Simpson, and Miss Lonelyhearts from Nathanael West’s novels â€Å"The Day of the Locust† and â€Å"Miss Lonelyhearts† all try to satisfy their desires with sexual wants, and violence. However, they are all very different from each other. For example, their histories, and the way they pursue the fulfillment of their desires are all unique to that specific character. The novel, â€Å"The Day of the Locust†, mostly focuses on the story of two main characters. These characters are Tod Hackett, and Homer Simpson.The novel gives the story of their lives while they both pursue the young woman, Faye Greener. In this way they are similar, but they are actually very different. Unlike Homer, Tod understands a lot of his experiences, especially his experiences with Faye. Because of this, Tod is portrayed as an educated man, Homer, on the other hand, has almost no idea what is going on. His actions and desires are almost always unexplainable. It seems as though he doesn’t even know what he himself is even thinking, let alone what he actually wants.Because of this, he appears uneducated, and clumsy. Both men pursue things that are artificial. The most notable of these is Faye Greener. Unlike Homer though, Tod knows that he can't have her, because he knows that pursuing her is a self-destructive route. Miss Lonelyhearts is the main character of the novel, â€Å"Miss Lonelyhearts†. His history is probably the reason for his need for sex and violence. ‘His history’ meaning his childhood, and also the letters that the people send to him for advice.Miss Lonelyhearts has a few encounters with a woman named Fay Doyle. They do have intercourse on one occasion, and she tries to make him have it a second time. However, instead of intercourse, Miss Lonelyhearts decides to beat her violently. His anger and his need for sex are brought about by the le tters that he has to read for his job, and his childhood experiences, like his encounter with the frog. Tod Hackett presents fewer personal experiences that can be used to analyze in a psychological way, but the way he thinks can be.He knows that he can’t have Faye, and he does want to rid Faye of the artificial quality that she possesses, but he can’t help but have a somewhat repulsive sexual attraction to her. Even to the point where he decides that raping her would be a suitable idea. And even attempts it at one point. In this way, Tod and Miss Lonelyhearts are similar, but not completely homogenous. Homer is a bit different from Tod, and Miss Lonelyhearts in this area. Homer is more understandable on a psychological level. At first, Homer seems as though he is uneducated, and also very clumsy.However, his disappointments, and his insecurities soon lead to aggression. His aggressions are expressions of anger that come from his past and his future. He does have a sex ual attraction to Faye, but his actions and feelings towards her are not quite as extreme as Tod’s and Miss Lonelyhearts’ feelings and actions toward women. Faye, however, does not take Homer seriously. He then feels like he has been cheated by Faye. He does a good job for most of the book at suppressing his anger until his final outburst that starts the riot at the end of the book.With Miss Lonelyhearts, Nathanael West presents a brutal and selfish character, which lusts for sex and violence, and gets both. With Tod Hackett, Nathanael West presents a successful and educated character that, despite his intellect, desperately wants a sexual relationship with a young woman, even to the point where he thinks about raping her, but never actually does it. And with Homer Simpson, Nathanael West presents an uneducated and clumsy character, which also lusts after a young woman, just not as explicitly as Tod, and turns out to be very aggressive.All of these characters are very similar in most of their desires, to be specific, their need for a sexual relationship, and their needs for aggression whether it is related to their sexual desires or not. Despite their many similarities, each character has a unique way of showing their desires. It may have been a straight-forward approach like Miss Lonelyhearts, or a somewhat cautious yet extreme approach like Tod, or a deceptively timid and passive-aggressive approach like Homer, which ends up in a catastrophically aggressive outburst.

All we need is love

All we need is love Love is a very deep feeling that goes with us in our life. Without love there is no true life and no meaning of life. From the moment we are born we are surrounded with love of our parents and other relatives and we love them back. First we love our mother – the first person we see in our life. You may say that in our babyhood it is an unconscious feeling, it is an instinct, but nevertheless it is true innocent love and affection. As we start sense the world we start feel love to father and other close people.We take and give this love s self-evident and can't even imagine our life without these people. Growing older we experience first love to somebody in kindergarten or at school. It is always pretty to kick at the little children attracted to each other. And it is a wonderful moment to realize that you are in love for the first time. In childhood and also in our adult life we also love our pets – cats, dogs, goldfish, tortoises etc. Our pets can a lways make us kind and happy. Have never understood people who don't love animals, and I am sure that every child should have a puppy or a kitten.Besides, care of domestic animals helps to bring up a conscious, responsible, attentive person. In our mature love we may love some persons, and we are very lucky if there is somebody who loves us back. Sure there can't always be mutual love, and we can't make somebody to love us as we do. But when we feel it, the world seems wonderful. Without a doubt love makes us stronger, happier, and more motivated. We get desire to become better for the person we are in love with, and to make good deeds. Love inspires everybody. Many poets, writers, artists, composers devoted heir works to beloved persons.If there was no love in our life there will be no outstanding works of art known all over the world. Sure it is a hard job to love someone, in spite of his/her imperfections, and the marriage build on love is the strongest. A person who does not lov e cannot be happy. He is usually grumpy, nervous, and strict. He cannot understand those who are experience this feeling. Feel sorry to such people because love is the most beautiful thing that can happen. I wish everyone to feel it, and I hope you and your close people love each other, and this love Will last forever.

Purpose and Meaning of Education Essay

Outlines: 1. Definition of the Education 2. Education in Islam and its importance 3. Purpose of Education 4. Peace and Prosperity through Education 5. Education as a best weapon 6. Education as a bridge to social and global brotherhood 7. Standard Education across the globe 8. Education can make this world a better place to live on 9. Education, the only survival for Humanity 10. Conclusion Poverty is my pride, struggle is my way of life, education is my weapon and love of Allah is my strength. (Hazrat Mohammad PBUH). Education in its general sense is a form of learning in which knowledge, skills, and habits of a group of people are transferred from one generation to the next through teaching, training, research, or simply through auto-didacticism. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts. Islam has put great stress on Education. The very first word of the first revelation was â€Å"Iqr’a† means read. The Holy Qur’an emphasizes more that seeking of knowledge is compulsory upon every man woman. Islam has given very clear instructions for the Education and has made it compulsory for all the genders equally. The purpose of education according to Islam is to serve the humanity in every possible way and lead a peaceful life by obeying the commandments of Allah (the only creator of the entire universe). Lack of education is the root cause of every trouble and misery. It is education only by which we can bring change, peace as well as prosperity in the world. Our aim should be clear in this regard that the only possible way to make human life as better as we can is education only. We know very well that education is the only weapon which is the best anti-biotic to every evil cause. We can destroy every evil strength through this weapon and bring desirable changes in every part of the globe. Today when we look at the world we find it divided on the bases of religion, race, colour, caste, creed and tribe. Sectarian and ethnic discrimination has drawn the boundaries of hate and egotism. We can overcome all these by spreading education in the entire world and make it a way towards social and global brotherhood on the basis of humanity. Past history proves that human is the most furious creature on this planet which is why today we see this bloody picture and insecurity all over the world but if we adopt the education in our characters and deeds we can surely make this world a better place to live on. When we speak about standard education it means there should be same and qualitative education across the world so that every human being can seek it in the very same like others do. Standard education will destroy the poverty, misery, and hunger from the world. No any other human doctrine can stop the destruction of human beings except the education as it the need of the hour as well as the only way for the survival of humanity. Conclusion. From the above mentioned facts and realities it is quite clear that the meaning, purpose and cause of education should be to serve the humanity without any kind of discrimination on the basis of equality so that we can make our world a place better to live on peacefully and purposefully.

Case Study: Captain Edith Strong Essay

Captain Edith Strong is the first woman to be promoted to captain. She has spent 18 years working through the ranks to achieve this high of a position in her agency and she is familiar with the internal problems her agency has a problem with. All the patrol officers believe they have a heavy workload and complain that they go from one incident to the next and spend too much time generating reports. The patrolmen fell that they have to cut corners to get their preliminary investigations completed because the time consumed generating reports. The patrol officers do not interact with each other except during shift change and roll call. A survey shows that the job is viewed as dissatisfying, morale is low, response time is long, the number of citizen-initiated complaints is up, more officers are filing disability claims, and employee turnover is exceeding projections. Captain Edith Strong is now in a position to make a difference to create a solution program that meets the needs of the d epartment and the employees (More, Vito, & Walsh, 2012,). WHAT PHILOSOPHICAL APPROACH DO YOU BELIEVE CAPTAIN STRONG SHOULD TAKE IN CARRYING OUT THIS PROJECT Abraham Maslow’s progression theory and hierarchy of needs for police administrators need to identify unfulfilled needs of their subordinates, this will help explain why police officers perform they way that they do. Then the management must create incentives that will make their officers perform better than marginally. Police administrators need to recognize what is needed by subordinates for personal growth such as job self esteem, encouraging self development, and career advancement (More, Vito, & Walsh, 2012,). David McClelland’s Acquired Needs Theory came up with three basic needs in human beings. One that human beings have a need to be successful. Two humans have a need for socialization individually and in social groups. Three human beings also have a need for or strive for power in controlling the behavior of others. These three needs exist in all people all of the time and these three motivate people to act on their jobs (More, Vito, & Walsh, 2012,). Typically most employees who become police officers want to help people, have a high value of community service because they know that being a police officer they will not become rich. The police officer does not dislike the work that they do but the opposite, they like the physical and mental effort it takes to do the job. Police officers excursive self direction and most time self control in order to complete their jobs. In this case study there is no motivation, potential for development, and capacity to assume responsibility in their agency because of the workload each patrolman has to achieve the agency’s goals (More, Vito, & Walsh, 2012,). WHAT SPECIFIC MOTIVATIONAL STRATEGIES WOULD YOU RECOMMEND THAT SHE SHOULD CONSIDER Job enrichment is designed to counteract the negative impact of specialization by building motivating factors into job content. Captain Edith Strong should use job enrichment as one process of her tools for motivational factor on the job. The captain can remove some controls the  patrolmen have like allowing patrolmen to work together while still maintaining accountability and responsibility of each person for his/her own work. Grant additional authority to the patrolman in their area of responsibility. Encourage autonomy in decision making as it relate to the job being done. Allow more difficult tasks to be performed by patrolman not normally handled said patrolman when they have the help they need. Last the captain should assign patrol officers into highly specialized tasks to become subject matter experts (More, Vito, & Walsh, 2012,). E.R.G. THEORY IS NOT APPLICABLE IN THIS INSTANCE Clayton Alderfer’s Existence, Relatedness, and Growth needs (ERG) would not work in the instance with Captain Edith Strong problem. ERG theory is built on three principles, need-escalation principle, Satisfaction-progression theory, and frustration-regression principle. The satisfaction-progression principle is when a lower level need has been satisfied the employee will desire for satisfaction for a higher level need and currently with Captain Strong’s agency there is not any time for a patrolmen to go after a higher level need. Since there is not any time to achieve higher level needs, there is no expectation of getting help with their preliminary investigations to stop cutting corners to get their work done then the patrolman have to be satisfied with the lower level needs of just getting their job done and going home (More, Vito, & Walsh, 2012,). HOW JOB ENLARGEMENT OR JOB ENRICHMENT IS APPLICABLE IN THIS CASE When it comes to job enlargement the authors view is that more officers need to be hired if the budget can support it. More officers need to be used to take some of the stress of not being able to communicate with likeminded people on the job. Having someone else to work with will make the paperwork get done more quickly while preliminary investigations can get the necessary time needed to be completed properly without cutting corners. Having a larger pool of patrolman means that Captain Strong can assign some of the patrolmen into more demanding positions to become specialized (More, Vito, & Walsh, 2012,). Job enrichment will only work in this case study when all the patrolmen are working together and not independently. When the patrolmen are able to help each other out on their assignments, report writing, and their preliminary investigations then they will able to get their work done in a less stressful manner giving each patrolman a feeling of satisfaction. Each employee will feel satisfied at the end of the day when they have help to complete their tasks which will give them a feeling of well being which is job enrichment (More, Vito, & Walsh, 2012,). Reference More, H.W., Vito, G.F., & Walsh, W.F. (2012). _Organizational Behavior and Management in_ _Law Enforcement_ (3rd ed.). Retrieved from The University of Phoenix eBook Collection database

Super size me Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Super size me - Essay Example Over a 30-day period, Spurlock further stops any and all exercise routines to further reflect the impact of McDonalds foods on human physiology. Outside of the physical effects, the film illustrates how the media impacts consumers to reflect what Spurlock believes is an unacceptable method of coercing Americans to indulge in fast food. Throughout the course of the film, Spurlock examines several decades worth of television commercials released by McDonalds since the 1970s, in order to depict how the media is able to coerce both children and adults into eating at the fast food chain. These commercials depict playful animated characters, who dance and sing with the prospect of being taken to McDonalds to indulge in greasy food (Sowers, 2006). From a psychological perspective, Spurlock comes to realize that McDonalds is using visual imagery, in the pursuit of stimulating a pleasurable connection between the fast food company and its menu items. Further, in the film, the well-known character, Ronald McDonald, is shown as a leader to children, engaging in pleasurable activities such as community basketball and various sporting events. This tends to indicate, to a less-sophisticated person in terms of identifying media influences, that McDonalds is a community-minded organization and that implicit trust should be given to the chain because of their charming spokesperson. Outside of the visual imagery, Spurlock further points out non-print media attempts to build a stronger loyalty to McDonalds with the insertion of signs and banners, all over the United States (and released by McDonalds), which promote the need to super size meals. Supersizing involves increasing the food portions by a significant margin, thus increasing the fat and caloric value of the food. Though Spurlock is somewhat biased in his approach to the film, he maintains a

The marketing strategy of Blackberry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

The marketing strategy of Blackberry - Essay Example The paper tells that today is the era of technology, where everything is dependent on hi-tech accessories; people pay more attention to what gadgets they have than anything else. Much new advancement in this sector have been made and is still in progress to make the life of a common person easier and more interesting by developing tools like cell phones, iPads and iPods. The most rapidly growing and highly competitive technological industry that could be found these days is concerned with developing cell phones, where innovation occurs at a daily basis and every upcoming product holds some new advancement. Initially started as just the tool for making and receiving calls, this industry has now developed such cut throat products that could act not only as mere tools of communications but also as the personal assistants to their holders. Such products are more commonly referred to as smart phones, as they are like small networked computers in the form of cell phones, which are high-end , multifunctional, business-centric in structure with high resolution color displays and fast mobile processors. Today, smart phones are equipped with technology and in built applications that can organize the whole day, access internet from anywhere and manage business appointments, thus making the life of a person much easier than it was possible before. In this cut throat industry, many competitors can be seen fighting to make their products more competitive. Today the main players include Research In Motion (RIM) with their blackberry phones, Apple with iphones, Samsung, Nokia and HTC among many others. All of these industries are competing against each other to achieve maximum market share, but with the launch of every product, one either holds the attention of all the customers or with one glitch, loses all because of the highly competitive environment. So, the secret in the success lies in the effective marketing of the products along with necessary developments in the produc t so as to ensure that they are updated in accordance with the recent technological changes. In this paper the focus will be on the marketing strategy of Blackberry, as Blackberry is one of the giants of the industry especially in UK where it was declared to be UK’s no. 1 smartphone, despite of the recent troubles faced by the product’s managers Blackberry was still able to hit 8.5 million UK subscribers averaging a market share of 27.7 per cent. Worldwide the product was able to hold a customer base of 75 million by the end of Dec 2011 increasing its market share by 35 per cent as compared to the last year (Warman, The Telegraph, Jan 2012). Research in Motion, a global leader in wireless technologies, introduced Blackberry solutions in 1999 giving the mobile industry a very surprising twist. Blackberry services are used by million of customers throughout the world, to connect with people and contents of their lives that matter the most. The most competitive environmen t faced by Blackberry is provided by its rivals like Apple, and Samsung which will be analyzed in this paper to observe how their actions affect each other. For many years now, Blackberry has been in competition with Apple’s iPhones. Year after year it has launched products to compete with the latest products introduced by the company. Blackberry hadn’t faced any real challenge in the global market until Apple’s introduction of iPhones. Blackberry launched its ‘Blackberry Bold’ in response to the Apple’s iPhone 3G, which had already scored 1 million sales in its first week of launch despite the reported crashes of its computer system. Blackberry introduced many features in Blackberry Bold that were not yet incorporated in the iPhone 3G, like the download of Microsoft documents where as iPhone met the competition by providing increased built in memory (Swaine, The Telegraph, 2008). After the launch, users were double minded as to which phone s hould be picked, as