The Lesson and Mid-term Break Essay -- English Literature

Introduction to The Lesson and Mid-term Break "The Lesson" tells the story of a 10 year old boy who has lost his father in the duration of school time. It goes on the say he's trapped and although he feels grief for the death of his father he realises that he can use the death to "bind the bullies' fist". "Mid-Term Break" is about the loss of a brother. It goes on to say that life goes on even though he has lost his brother and he witnesses things he does not normally experience (his father crying). "Mid-Term Break" Meaning The meaning of "Mid-Term Break" is to tell the story of an accident involving a young child and a vehicle. He tries to explain how life goes on and the death of the boy's brother doesn't mean that life stops. It goes on to show that because his brother has died certain things happen that he doesn't usually see "I met my father crying" and " Old men standing up to shake my hand". It ends with the powerful and chilling line "a four foot box, a foot for every year" This shows that the boy was very young and had a small coffin because he was only 4 years of age. Structure The poems structure is very neat and very tidy. He chooses to write in three line stanzas because this allows the poem to flow easily and allows the stanza below it the link in with its predecessor. By also having three line stanzas helps the last line have more of a "punch" feeling because it breaks the mould. Heaney avoids using rhyme in this piece because we usually associate rhyme with happiness and glee. Because of this reason Heaney purposely makes this poem sad and hopeless. Analysing The mood changes throughout the poem. At the start the mood is sombre, sad and mysterious but when it reache... ...death. "Pride, like a goldfish, flashed a sudden fin": we can imagine the goldfish swimming in their bowl, perhaps set in the sunshine on a windowsill. The sun catches a goldfish at a certain angle, and the gold of its scales suddenly shines brightly. The speaker, caught in the sunshine of all this attention and sympathy, suddenly feels pride shining in him. At no point in this poem does the speaker express sadness at the loss of his father. However, he is aware that he should feel something, and his shame at the lack of feeling is in conflict with his relief and his pride. What is uppermost in the speaker's mind is the confined little world of the school (rather like the "shining prison" of the goldfish bowl). His life is centred on school, the bullying, his other school-mates. I think the bitter lesson he learns is about his own self-centredness.

research study on gender differences Essay -- essays research papers

Non-verbal communication is defined as communication without words. (Devito, 116) Throughout your interpersonal interactions, your face communicates many things, especially your emotions. (Devito, 125) Women are stereotyped in today’s society as to being more emotional than men in emotional settings. Not in all instances is this true, however, men feel they need to set a strong, domineering, display of their emotions and the way they react towards certain emotional situations. Gender display rules are a set of rules that usually either male or female follow in order to fit their specific gender script in society. It is stated in the textbook that women talk more about feelings and emotions and use communication for emotional expression more then men, and because of this females express themselves facially more than men. (Devito, 148) The research article I chose to summarize for part two of the textbook is titled, â€Å" Gender Difference in Facial Reaction to Fear-relevant Stimuli†. The focus of this was to discover whether females are predominantly more facially reactive than males, or whether females are more emotionally reactive in general, as reflected even by non-facial reactions such as autonomic responding and emotional experience. (Thunberg & Dimberg)   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In previous research on nonverbal communication, results stated that females tend to be more emotional than men in emotional situations. (Thunberg & Dimberg) Research also found that imagery-induced emotions as well as visually presented emotional stimuli generate specific facial EMG responses that are interpretable as negative and positive emotional responses. Further studies with EMG testing, which is a test that evaluates reactions towards emotional activity, shows that women are more emotionally reactive in general. With these given results to previous research, the authors of this article presented two hypotheses, which they will use to explain the following study. These hypotheses are, 1. That when exposed to emotional stimuli, females are specifically more facially reactive, but not more reactive in other respects, and, 2, that females are more emotionally reactive in general. (Thunberg & Dimberg, 2) The main purpose of the study was to distinguish the resu lts between the two given hypotheses.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ninety-six students from Uppsala ... ...n my family, I can speak that my family is different when it comes to gender display rules. When I was fourteen years old I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. When I found out the diagnosis, I cried for weeks, along with my mother, father, and brother. My father and brother were not ashamed to cry in the hospital with me. However, my family has always been emotional, and I am aware that every family and person is different. Thus, having an emotional family, gave me reason to think that it is not true that men don’t cry or show emotions. Of course, everyone is different, and after taking this class in concert with Family and Society I am on my way to a very open attitude about a lot of different aspects on different issues with Gender, families, communication skills, etc., where to before I was very objective to everyone and everything, except my own. References Devito, Joseph A. Messages Building Interpersonal Communication Skills. Hunter College of the City University of New York. United States, 2005 Thunberg, Monika, Dimberg, Ulf. â€Å"Gender Difference in Facial Reaction to Fear- Relevant Stimuli†. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior. New York: Spring 2000. Vol. 24, Iss1; PG 45

American Civil War Essay

Many sources claim that the American Civil War is one of the most frequently written about topic in American history, and in that, the individuals who led both sides of the epic struggle have been immortalized in print as well. A pivotal work that meets both of these criteria is â€Å"A Long Shadow: Jefferson Davis and the Final Days of the Confederacy†, by Michael B. Ballard. In writing this book, Ballard sought not only to provide a factual account of the 1865 retreat of the government of the Confederate States of America from its capital city of Richmond, Virginia, just ahead of the conquering United States troops with particular emphasis on the leader of the CSA, Jefferson Davis. This book review will not only put forth compelling reasons why students and casual readers alike should choose this book, but also a brief summary of the book and a discussion of the themes found within the book. It almost goes without saying that any book worth reviewing should be worth reading, Ballard’s book being no exception. The work is worthwhile for the reader- be it a student or Civil War enthusiast- because it is as much an account of an often-neglected part of a massively researched and discussed portion of American history, but also because the book is a tale of human experience, political differences, and the clashing of two ways of life which ultimately would only allow for one of the ways of life to move forward from that point intact. First, the book goes into detail about the man behind the CSA, President Jefferson Davis. Ballard uses vivid imagery to describe the frail appearance of Davis by the spring of 1865, due in large part to the strain that was being placed on him to guide a new nation, and especially a massive army, in the face of a highly motivated and larger, better equipped US armed force , which in a very short time would crush Davis’ army and entire government, culminating in the formal surrender of the CSA on April 9, 1865. The book then moves forward with accounts of the military maneuvers, commanders and defeats that made up the waning days of the Confederacy itself. By looking beneath the text of â€Å"A Long Shadow†, it is possible to gain a better understanding of the underlying themes of the book, leading to a much better understanding and appreciation of the work itself. Perhaps the most prominent theme of this book is the struggle of human spirit to overcome insurmountable odds to achieve a given end. For Jefferson Davis, his all consuming goal was to see his Confederate States of America gain recognition and independence not only from the United States, but also the other nations of the world, from whom Davis and his fellow officials sought diplomatic relations and nation status. The other theme that is a common thread in Ballard’s book is perseverance when one believes that their cause is just. It can definitely be argued that both the US and CSA felt in their heart of hearts that what they were fighting for was not only right, but the absolute correct course of human events. Indeed, both sides of the conflict claimed that God was on their side and felt that He would see them to victory no matter what. Perhaps this sort of divine protection is what kept Jefferson Davis constantly trying to keep his cause going, even to the point where Davis himself was at the point of collapse and his nation lay in shambles. In conclusion, it can fairly be said that this book is worthy of being considered one of the most relevant works on the topics of Jefferson Davis, the Confederate States of America, and the final days of the American Civil War as well as an epic tale of human endurance, struggle, triumph and defeat. Works Cited Ballard, Michael B. 1986. A Long Shadow: Jefferson Davis and the Final Days of the Confederacy. Jackson, MS: University Press of Mississippi.

DNA Databases: Crime Fighting Weapon or Threat to Privacy

1- A DNA database is a database that contains a profile of bodily fluid left by criminals at the crime scenes. It has developed by the biology laboratory of the Florida department of law enforcement. These profiles are sent to nationwide DNA bank. There are several benefits of these DNA databases. First, the DNA can be used as evidence in trials. It allows criminals to be identified by their own genes. Second, the computer analysis can discover the identity of a criminal by matching DNA from blood, hair, saliva, or other body fluid left at the crime scene with a DNA profile in the database. Third, it can prove someone is innocent. 2- Although DNA databases have lots of benefits, it poses lots of problems. They pose a risk to innocent people if they (databases) contain data on people who are convicted criminals. Also the people who collect DNA and analyze them can make mistakes witch lead to a wrongful outcome in the court. And finally, it may be chance that innocent people may be suspected as criminal if any hair or bodily fluids found at criminal.Database Management System and Data There might be valid reasons for an innocent person’s DNA to be at a crime scene. – According to the bush’s administration, the national DNA database should includes, beside the criminals and convicted people of course, the juveniles or the people who have been accused but not convicted. If we look at it from another perspective, it should be limited to convicted felons only because they are included in the criminal activity. DNA samples taken when people are arrested must be destroyed if the individual is not charged or convicted. 4- DNA databases should be used only by the law enforcement units or the security agency because of the sensitive information these databases indlude.

Effects of Countries of Transition Economies Essay

Centrally planned economy is an economic system in which the government makes almost all the decisions of a country’s economic activities (â€Å"Definition of ‘Centrally Planned Economy’†, 2014). For instance, government takes control on what goods and services is produced and how the resources are disseminated. The purpose of centrally planned economy is to enhance the productivity and management by allowing the planners to take advantage of better information accomplished through a combination of economic resources while making decisions on the topic of investment and also the distributions of economic inputs (â€Å"Command economy†, 2014). On the other hand, a market economy is an economic system in which the consumers and businesses who take control on making the economic decisions of a country (â€Å"Definition of ‘Market Economy’†, 2014). For instance, consumers and businesses decide the price of goods and services and how m uch to supply. However, there is little government involvement. In the late 1980s, the decline of the centrally planned economies has downgraded the living standards of the people (â€Å"Economic reforms (transition to a market-based economy)†, 2014). Hence, some of the centrally planned countries such as Poland, Hungary, and Yugoslavia intended to move towards a market economy because this is the only way to conquer the gap between these socialist economies and the western-like market economies (â€Å"Economic reforms (transition to a market-based economy)† , 2014). The transformation from a centrally planned economy to a market based economy has never been easy (â€Å"Command economy†, 2014). There is only one process of transition is considered as successful which is the People’s Republic of China (â€Å"Command economy†, 2014). On the  other hand, the Soviet Union’s transition was much more challenging (â€Å"Command economy†, 2014). This is because of the creation of price ceilings which is under the soviet’s planning (â€Å"Command economy†, 2014). This has caused the serious problem which is shortages (â€Å"Command economy†, 2014). A program of shock therapy has created which is to implement the transition process in a short period of time (â€Å"Command economy†, 2014). Hence, a big-scale privatization, budget cuts and liberalization of economy and finance policies. The fundamental economic problem is linked to the concern of scarcity (â€Å"The fundamental economic problem†, 2014). Scarcity happens when societies do not have enough resources to satisfy their unlimited needs and wants which is also call demand (â€Å"The fundamental economic problem†, 2014). Due to the limited resources and the unlimited demands, producers and consumers have to make a wise decision between competing alternatives (â€Å"The fundamental economic problem†, 2014). By making a wise economic decision, the alternatives must be sacrificed which also call the opportunity cost. This is because that they believe that the economic decision they made has a greater benefits than the opportunity cost (â€Å"The fundamental economic problem†, 2014). Thus, firms and households are the components from the circular flow diagram play an important role to deal with the problem of scarcity. However, government may involve in the market and thus government must also need to know which way is the best to use taxpayer’s money in order to enhance the country’s development. According to the America’s first Nobel Prize winner for economics, Paul Samuelson said that in order to solve the problem of scarcity facing by all of the societies, three basic questions must be answered which are what to produce, how to produce and whom to produce (â€Å"Samuelson’s three questions†, n.d.). The economic system performs similar function despite the differences in each system. First and foremost, one of the functions stated by College of Agriculture & Life Sciences (n.d), the basic functions of the economic are to determine what and how much to produce. To produce goods and services, firms should analyse on what are th e demands and the needs of the society and then produce goods that are highly values by the society. Therefore, consumers are willing to pay more to satisfy their needs and wants, which also benefits firms where they are able to maximize their supply and also income. Firms also could produce a number of goods depending on the market  size. Therefore, there won’t be wastage. Secondly is how are firms going to produce goods? The production of goods and services can be from different type of aspect. For example, firm uses labour production technology to produce their goods. It is because hiring labour from other countries like Bangladesh is cheap. Besides that is by using capital production technology. With the advance of technology, machines or robots are able to help in production by maximizing the use of resources and also maximize production with the resources available. Lastly is for whom the production of goods and services are for? Goods and services are normally produced for everybody as some firms may want to maximize their profits by targeting everybody. However, som e firms may want to segment their products to certain segments only. For instance, a firm which produces baby diapers only target for the baby segment. Some other firms also may target other segments according to race, culture and also age. By this, it will help to maintain the economy and also promote economic progress. Planned economies basically give the government autocracy type dominate over the resources of the nation (â€Å"planned economy†, 2014). They mitigate the need of private firms and permits the government to decide everything from allocation to pricing (â€Å"Economy system†, n.d.). Planned economies can offer stability, but also can restrict the progress and development of the nation if the government does not distribute resources to the innovative companies (â€Å"Economy system†, n.d.). The system rely on partial or total government control of the factors of production. All sources of production are owned and operated by the government (â€Å"Economy system†, n.d.). Individuals are not allowed to possess whichever property. The government programs, arranges, and coordinates the entire production procedure in many industries. Lastly, the government, make the most economic resolution with those on top of the hierarchy (â€Å"Economy system†, n.d.). Market Based economy is a free market economy where economic decisions are made. In other words, the production of the goods and services are control by the laws of supply and demand (Amadeo, 2014). Private firms or individuals take control of the allocation resources. Firms sell their goods and services at the highest probable price to maximize profit which consumers are capable and ready to pay (Amadeo, 2014). In a market economy, most goods and services are own privately. These enable private firms and individuals to make decision and choices freely.  Owners, consumers and workman are free to trade, purchase, generate resources in the free market (Amadeo, 2014). According to the law of demand, when the demand of an item increases, the prices will eventually increase (Amadeo, 2014). Besides, the forces of supply and demand are free from the involvement of the government. The duty of the government in market based economy is to simply insure that the market is set up and processing (â€Å"market economy†, n.d.) The standard of economic development in centrally planned system is low. It has a bigger agricultural sector as proportion of total productivity, despite on low priority of agriculture in resource distribution. It also has a high standard of forced saving and development was a high priority of centralized distribution. Furthermore, the system has a smaller service sector. Socialist countries less diverse because of not specializing conform to comparative advantage. Prices are also more stable. They inclined to display greater stability after most of the post-war era (economy system, n.d.). A centrally planned economy can lower unemployment rate, centralize resources on significant objective such as speedy economic growth and prevent wasteful reproduction of economic activities (â€Å"the pros of command economy†, 2014). A planned economy is essential at mobilizing economic resources. Firms have the capability to implement big projects, achieve their target and build industrial strength (â€Å"the pros of command economy†, 2014). Besides, it can avoid monopoly force misuse (â€Å"the pros of command economy†, 2014). Planned economies have the capability to refrain the lavish of monopoly force. It also permits the government to validly conquer market failure, inequality and set up a community that will maximize the welfare of people despite maximizing earnings. The country produces a planning scope of power so as to effectively implement long term goals (â€Å"the pros of command economy†, 2014). There is also more fair distribution of income and wealth (economy system, n.d.). On the other hand, planned economies mostly suffer from strict bureaucracy, responsibility problems, deficient decision-making, communication issues, self-serving action and incapable conformity (Chavez III, n.d.). These issues lead to excessive of shortages and surpluses of goods and services. Unsatisfactory allocation mostly leads to black market economies. The people in this system have a poor level of living and are poorly motivated (Chavez III, n.d.). There are pros and cons in every economy system. Centrally planned economy is fully  controlled by the government. Therefore, mentioned by Engrade (n.d), the relative merits for centrally planned economy is whereby the welfare of all citizens is the primary goal. In are other words, the citizen are put as the main priority to any situations. For example, goods are being produced based on the demand from the citizens. Next is prices of goods are being under control by the government so that citizens will be able to afford to consume goods and services. For instance, government provides petrol subsidies to citizens. Other than that is also said by Engrade (n.d), there will be no industrial unrest such as striking or riots as the governments c ontrols it in a systematic manner. For example, the wages of employee or the rights of citizens. Lastly is whereby government possess information to direct resources. The government have the information to where needs resources and where do not need. By this everything will be under control and there won’t be wastage. Compare to centrally planned economy, market based economy has more freedom as the government do not interfere with citizens doings. With private sector, the country is becoming more powerful. The relative merits of the market based economy is where with the boost of private sector, the country of state will be more updated and have more economic power. Private sector would be also able to bring in advance technology to increase the performance and the productivity of goods produced. Besides that, the prices of goods are determined by the market mechanism which is the types of goods and services of products being produced. Lastly but not least are competition among firms may help to improve the quality of goods produces (Engraded, n.d). For example, in order to attract more customers, private sector would upgrade the quality and also control the pricing in other to compete with other private sector. By this, I would benefit a lot to consumers and they will be willing to pay for it. Throughout the complete process of economic transformation which began in 1970s and accelerate in the 1980s as the economic conditions worsened (â€Å"Economic reforms (transition to a market-based economy)†, 2014). In 1989, the political systems in some of the socialist countries started their unexpected collapses which lead to the neglect of the centrally planned system and slowly transform into a market based economy system (â€Å"Economic reforms (transition to a market-based economy)†, 2014). Thus, it has brought some significant effects on the world undeveloped markets and on  global trading patterns of countries (â€Å"Economic reforms (transition to a market-based economy)†, 2014). In the first stage of the transformation, a number of fundamental economic improvements had to be executing in all these countries (â€Å"Economic reforms (transition to a market-based economy)†, 2014). These modifications were related to liberalization of prices, trade and also foreign exchange (â€Å"Economic reforms (transition to a market-based economy)†, 2014). Moreover, the transformation of the economy system also brings macro-economic stabilization to the countries (â€Å"Economic reforms (transition to a market-based economy)†, 2014). It helps to deal with the essential external and internal disparities of the national economies which are high or hyper-inflation (â€Å"Economic reforms (transition to a market-based economy)†, 2014). Additionally, transition to market based economy also facilitate in the aspect of restoration of private assets, positioning the conditions, legal and organizational structure required for an economy based in personal enterprises and economic activities (â€Å"Economic reforms (transition to a market-based economy)† , 2014). Other than this, it also enabling the reimbursement or re-compromise of the accumulated foreign debt and, overall, it helps to take the advantages of national economy which include the development of the banking and financial segment and the attraction of foreign capitals and investments (â€Å"Economic reforms (transition to a market-based economy)†, 2014). The other effect is that it helps the countries to set up a standardized exchange rate (â€Å"Economic reforms (transition to a market-based economy)†, 2014). Lastly, the transition towards the market-based economy system had aid the countries in the elimination of state control over foreign trade and established legal regulations in order to stimulate the entrepreneurship development (â€Å"Economic reforms (transition to a market-based economy)† , 2014). In the past decades, millions of countries and people think that planned economy was the best method to operate their economies. There are still some other countries currently under planned system, like North Korea. However, planned system tends to lose out from major inefficiencies and it work out not as successful as other systems. Market and command countries incline to place distinct preference on the part of government in the economy. The essential economic problem is scarcity and choice. Because of scarcity, choices have to be made. The transformation had improved the development of the economy  and brings stabilization to the nation. With reinforced globalization, we became more acutely conscious of the mutuality of all countries in our world economy (â€Å"COMPARATIVE ECONOMIC SYSTEM†, n.d.). References Amadeo.K, (2014). Market Economy. Retrieved from http://useconomy.about.com/od/US-Economy-Theory/a/Market-Economy.htm. ASIA-PACIFIC ECONOMICS Blog, (2014). Command economy pros and cons. Retrieved from http://apecsec.org/command-economy-pros-and-cons/ Centrally planned economy. (2014). Definition of ‘Centrally Planned Economy’. Retrieved from http://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/centrally-planned-economy.asp. Command economy. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.answers.com/topic/planned-economy. Chavez III.F, (n.d). What Is a Centrally Planned Economic System?. Retrieved from http://www.ehow.com/facts_7703633_centrally-planned-economic-system.htm. College of Agriculture & Life Sciences. (n.d). The Functions of An Economic System. Retrieved from http://www.cals.ncsu.edu/course/are012/lecturepdf/lectur7.pdf. Economic Education. (n.d.). COMPARATIVE ECONOMIC SYSTEM. Retrieved from http://www.econedlink.org/lessons/EconEdLink-print-lesson.php?lid=322&type=student. Economy System, (n.d). Planned economy. Retrieved from http://www.ssag.sk/SSAG%20study/EKO/Economic%20Systems.pdf. Engraded. (n.d). Economis Systems. Retrieved from https://wikis.engrade.com/economicsystems. European Commission. (2014). Economic reforms (transition to a market-based economy). Retrieved from https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/multisite/etc/en/content/economic-reforms-transition-market-based-economy. Investor Words, (2014). Planned Economy. Retrieved from http://www.investorwords.com/8175/planned_economy.html#ixzz34n1pNDUu. Market economy, (2014). Definition of ‘Market Economy’. Retrieved from http://www.investopedia.com/terms/m/marketeconomy.asp. The economic problem, Samuelson’s three questions. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.economicsonline.co.uk/Competitive_markets/The_economic_problem.html. The fundamental economic problem. (2007). Retrieved from http://econ.economicshelp.org/2007/09/fundamental-economic-problem.html. .

The Rise of the Superbugs

A Superbug is a bacterium that can live in the human body and has the ability to withstand all forms of antibiotic medication. Superbugs are becoming increasingly significant in modern medicine as they are becoming more and more resistant to antibiotics. Antibiotics were discovered in 1928 by Alexander Fleming (Walsh and McManus, 2000). This resulted in a huge movement forward in medical history and even greatened human life expectancy. Since then antibiotics have been widely used and abused, people began to treat everything with this ‘miracle’ drug. If antibiotics are continually used as bacteria grows exponentially more resistant to them then eventually society will fall back into an era without the readily use of antibiotics. Fortunately the superbug is not currently immune to all antibiotics as some forms of antibiotics can still treat the bacteria. In years to come the superbug will become increasingly hazardous to mainstream society as it grows faster than scientists can create medication for. Bacteria are the main source for all diseases and deaths worldwide and have been on earth for billions of years, much longer than humans. Bacteria were first discovered by a Dutchman named Anton van Leeuwenhoek in the 1660’s but it wasn’t until the 1850’s that bacteria was regarded as the main cause of disease. Because bacteria have been around for so long it has evolved to adapt to most environments to withstand any other organisms. In the 1930’s Alexander Fleming, Ernst Chain and Howard Florey discovered an antibody which could destroy most bacteria and assist to fight infectious diseases. Many experiments were completed to understand the full impact antibiotics had on humans and how much was needed to rid someone of disease. Drug companies began to mass produce Antibiotics as a means of curing infections and diseases, but only a few years later scientists began to observe the bacteria’s resistance to antibiotics. Like most environments, bacteria were able to adapt to live comfortably with the Antibiotics. Darwin’s theory of evolution states that through natural selection the fittest will survive, this is the case for bacteria living with antibiotics. (Wiley, 2004) ‘The introduction of an antibiotic alters the environment and acts as a selective pressure’. They had developed a resistant by numerous ways, the most common being horizontal gene transmission. This is the passing of genetic material between bacterial cells and can be done by three different processes. The first being Conjugation, which is the transmission of resistant genes through plasmids. Plasmids are small strands within a call which are able to replicate the DNA of a chromosome and carry information around the cell and to other cells. It allows the cell the ability to adapt to different environments. The bacterium achieves antibiotic resistance by direct contact with another bacterium where the plasmid moves into the other cell through a protein tube called a Pilus. The second is Transformation, a cell will pick up DNA from their environment, usually from other dead cells and then incorporate it into its own genetic makeup. The third is called Transduction. This is where bacteriophages, which are small viruses, pass through bacteria injecting themselves inside. When a phage moves to the next bacterium it carries a small amount of the genetic code from the previous cell, allowing the DNA to pass between cells. Wiley, 2004) (Bailey, 2013). These bacteria then split and multiply, creating a bacterium that is resistant to most antibiotics and these are known as superbugs. Superbugs are growing at an exponential rate, with more antibiotics used, bacteria has the perfect environment to create an ideal resistant bacterium. For many years now scientists have known of this increasing issu e, attempting to create new forms of antibiotics while the bacteria will always adapt and grow resistant to. To quote Alexander Fleming: ‘The greatest possibility of evil in self-medication is the use of too small doses so that instead of clearing up infection the microbes are educated to resist penicillin and a host of penicillin-fast organisms is bred out which can be passed to other individuals and from them to others until they reach someone who gets a septicemia or pneumonia which penicillin cannot save. ’ (Walsh and McManus, 2000). The superbug poses a huge threat to society in many ways and it raises many issues. How should the patient be handled? How many different types of antibiotics are too much for a person to retain? How can people living in poverty prevent the spread of bacteria? The rise of the superbug produces numerous questions surrounding the care of patients and the fast spread of the resistant bacteria. The way scientists and doctors treat and care for their patients should be top priority, but when the patient is either living in poverty or in an area with limited resources it becomes difficult. In many poor cultures the superbug is growing much faster because they don’t necessarily have the understanding to prevent the spread of bacteria. In places like India and Pakistan antibiotics can be bought readily at pharmacies without prescriptions. Because many people think antibiotics can cure anything they use them inappropriately, therefore creating an environment for the bacteria to grow resistant. This is a major issue in Southern Asia as the rise of superbugs is much faster here than other countries. Reasons for this include the ease of access to antibiotics, the method of isolation for patients with the superbug and the contamination of water by antibiotics. Many drug companies deposit their waste into rivers nearby, creating the perfect environment for bacteria. Isolation of patients is significant in controlling the outbreak of the superbug but in many Southern Asian countries isolation is not very well managed. Limited resources mean there is limited rooms and limited money and as a result many hospitals provide suitable grounds for the superbug. In many Western countries isolation can also be a problem but in a different way. Because some bacteria can spread so easily, isolation becomes the solution. While they are dying from that disease they are probably going to infect others. So on a public health point of view it’s better off not treating them and sending them off to die alone’ (4 Corners, 2012). Economically many drug companies aren’t developing new ways to defeat the superbug because it’s not as profitable as manufacturing drugs that people will need for their entire lives. As a result there are only a small number of companies attempting to defeat the superbug. Another area for concern is the current rate of antibiotics going into animal feed. In 1998, in the United States, 80 million prescriptions of antibiotics for human use were filled. This equals 12,500 tons in one year. Animal and agricultural uses of antibiotics are added to human use. Agricultural practices account for over 60% of antibiotic usage in the U. S. , so this adds an additional 18,000 tons per year to the antibiotic burden in the environment’ (Kenneth Todar, 2012). Politically this number is far too large to sustain as it is expensive and eventually won’t help the animals, rather it will just create more superbugs. The most important question is what is being done to prevent the rise of superbugs. Scientists develop numerous ways to do this, most failing. But recently there have been a few breakthroughs in terms of stopping the superbugs from killing humans. Firstly, more than ? of all antibiotics used are from soil. Antibiotics are also found hundreds of metres underground in caves, where the living conditions are harsh. In order for the bacteria to survive they must either defend their own resources very well or attack other bacteria, by producing bacteria killing chemicals, to get their resources. Collecting these chemicals could produce a new antibody that is extremely powerful because it has survived in such harsh environments. Secondly, just as bacteria have been on earth for billions of years, so have bacteriophages. A bacteriophage is a virus for bacteria; it injects itself into the bacterium and produces many replicas of itself inside. It will keep replicating until the bacteria splits or bursts. As there are many different types of bacteria there are also any different bacteriophages, which makes it difficult to find the right phage for the bacteria. Using bacteriophages to kill bacteria is better than antibiotics because they have the ability to adapt to their environment. Lastly bacteria can’t kill on it’s own, it must have a large number of bacteria to create any damage to a person. It was discovered quite recently that bacteria have the ability to communicate with each other, they release molecules that grow in proportion to the number of bacteria so when that number gets high enough the receptors on the bacteria communicate and change their behaviour at the same time (SBS Documentary, 2013). This is known as quorum sensing. Being able to stop the communication between bacteria would prevent the bacteria from harming people, they would be inactive. Many scientists have produced other methods to prevent the rise of the superbug but unfortunately most bacteria have evolved and become resistant. Currently there are very little bacteria that have fully evolved to be resistant to all antibiotics but in the years to come antibiotics could become ineffective. In the past antibiotics were overused, they were used to fight diseases that could not be cured with antibiotics which therefore created antibiotic resistant bacteria. Only in recent times have scientists really begun to address this issue as more and more people are developing the superbug with no appropriate cure yet. The rise of the superbug is becoming increasingly dangerous to society and many ethical, economical and health issues must be answered.

Animals and Myriad Ways they can Kill or Heal Us Essay - 1

Animals and Myriad Ways they can Kill or Heal Us - Essay Example Introduction A lot of animals in this world are poisonous. Often they come in direct conflict with humans and become the cause of death and partial or total paralysis. This is the reason man has hated these animals for centuries. By making these animals useful, present advancement of science and technologies has changed this preconceived notion. Some of these animals are snakes, spiders, and scorpions. This paper reviews the benefits that are derived from venoms of these animals, the process of processing venom and the diseases they cure. Venom ejected by snakes can be broadly classified into four groups. These are neurotoxins, sitotoxins, hemotoxins and miotoxins. In the majority of cases, neurotoxic venom is related to the nervous system, hemotoxins is related to blood and vascular tissues and miotoxins is a combination of both neurotoxic and hemotoxic venoms. Cobra is one of those snakes whose venom is used for therapeutic purposes. Venom ejected by cobra can be classified as a ne urotoxin, a compound that affects nervous systems of human beings. Reference to cobra venom can be traced to Chinese civilization and Vedas. During the early 1900’s cobra venom was largely used as a medicine to treat people with depression, back pain, headaches and menstrual pain (The Therapeutic Uses of Cobras’ Venom Neurotoxins, n.d.). ... The homeopathic physicians prescribe venom of Asian Cobra (Naja tripudians), but in practice, venom from all types of cobra from Middle East to Philippines is taken and processed (The Therapeutic Uses, n.d.). Medical use Since 1960, snakes venom has acquired an important place in medical treatment. The compounds present in snake venom affect muscle contraction by enhancement of the hormone Bradykinin. This hormone is responsible for dilatation the blood vessels. â€Å"The peptides present in venom transform angiotensin I into another peptide, angiotensin II, which also supports constriction†. When the Bradykinin as well as other peptides are blocked, the process of ‘blood vessel constriction’ no longer functions. Only the process of dilatation takes place. This makes snake venom an effective and alternative treatment for treating symptoms of hypertension. In spite of not being a medical drug, peptide present in snake venom contains numerous chemical features which make â€Å"it indispensible for heart attacks, neurological disorders, diseases related to blood†. Some drugs that are processed from venom of snakes are Lisinopril, Enalapril, Defibrase and Captopril. More extensive use of snake venom is utilized in treating problems related with blood cells. Snake venom has also helped in development of non- peptide compounds like Aggrastat by using ‘disintegrin’, which is a toxin present in the venoms of saw- scaled viper found in Africa. The compound functions by binding fibrinogen receptors present in blood onto platelets which is performed by disintegrin, thus performing the function of a coagulant. Some compounds in snake venom, like ‘Ancrod’ enzyme of Calloselasma rhodostoma also functions as