Epistemology and Knowledge Essay Example for Free

Epistemology and Knowledge Essay Epistemology, or the study of knowledge, requires the scholar analyze the what, how, and why’s of their own knowledge. Asking these questions of themselves is essentially applying that which they have learned. There are different origins of knowledge as conceptualized by philosophers, educators, and scientists. Early philosophers defined knowledge as â€Å"justified true belief† (Cooper, pg. 23). In order for an individual to know something it must be true, he or she must believe it, and the belief in it must be justified or rationally reasonable. Later, early modern philosophers required knowledge to be proven and absolute. The scientific method was employed to provide proof for ideas and beliefs. The means by which knowledge is acquired varies. Feldman cites sources of knowledge as perception, expert testimony, memory, reasoning, and introspection (Feldman, 2003). As an educator, instructing primary age students on a daily basis, I must not only have great insight into what I believe, but I also must have insight into my student’s knowledge as well. Instructors need to know a number of things about their students, such as: Do the students have adequate prior knowledge to understand the new material being presented? Are the students sufficiently motivated to engage in the cognitive tasks required of them? Does the information fit an existing scheme of knowledge or will it require some alteration of current understanding? Understanding what my student know and at what depth they are able to apply that knowledge guides my instruction. My natural curiosity, a natural inclination for question, and a need for answers motivate the search for explanations. Knowledge and wisdom give an understanding of our position, role, and function in the world. Achterbergh and Vriens (2002) stated, â€Å"The role of knowledge in generating appropriate actions is that it serves as a background for articulating possible courses of action (articulation), for judging whether courses of action will yielded the intended result and for using this judgment in selecting among them (selection), for deciding how actions should be implemented and for actually implementing action (implementation)† (pg. 223). Knowledge enables interpretation of experiences, predictions of consequences, and provides the ability to make informed decisions. My own personal epistemology is a product of each of these views. Personal experiences have a major influence on beliefs and should be an acceptable source of knowledge but not the only consideration when acquiring knowledge. There is also a place for the scientific method which offers proven data to base knowledge. For me, knowledge is a product of reasoning (Feldman, 2003). I derive knowledge from information imported through different modes and from various sources, such as personal experiences, advice from experts, and data. These inputs of information are cognitively processed and filtered with the reference to past experience and prior knowledge to become new â€Å"justified true beliefs† (Cooper, ). Thus, knowledge acquisition is a process involving the collection of raw data or information, reasoning, and judgment making. For example, after my students have taken a test, I look at the data, think about the patterns in the data, or the lack of a pattern using prior knowledge and experiences as a filter. Finally, I decide what my next step or strategy will be. Do I need to reteach the subject because the pattern suggests that most of my students did not fully understand the skill or concept? Or do I move on to another more complex skill or concept because my students have proven themselves knowledgeable? It is in this way that I acquire knowledge and apply that knowledge to planning lessons for my students. Many of my colleagues rely solely on the scientific method to make decisions in regards to student learning. They are satisfied with looking at a spreadsheet full of data and believe that it tells the complete story in regards to students. They are also under the assumption that scores derived from a series of multiple choice tests given on a set of skills will reveal if a student has acquired the desired knowledge. Basing grades on these tests is also appropriate. I do not believe that this tells the full story of my student’s knowledge. These tests may demonstrate the ability to regurgitate this knowledge within a certain context, but out of this context this may not be true. I do, however, use this data to help inform many of my decisions, however, I do not make decisions based exclusively on this data. There must be a balance  of reasoning, using my 16 years of experiences and training, as well as raw data tells a more complete story of my student’s knowledge and abilities. I have worked for Porterville Unified School District (PUSD), in Porterville, California, my entire career. PUSD’s vision and mission statements read as follows: â€Å"PUSD students will have the skills and knowledge to be prepared for college and career and to make a positive impact in a dynamic global society. The mission of PUSD is to provide students a dynamic, engaging and effective educational experience that prepares them with the skills to be productive citizens in a global society. † As a result, it is perceived that all students will develop and demonstrate â€Å"critical thinking and problem solving skills; cultural awareness and the ability of collaborate with diverse groups; effective communication skills of listening, speaking and writing; creativity and innovation; leadership, self-management and organizational skills obtained through real world applications and community involvement; (and) the ability to navigate the global world of work and further their education (Porterville, 2012). † Porterville Unified (PUSD) has given explicit expectations for what students should know at the end of their educational career with the district, how students get to these end goals is a little less clear and left to the judgment of the teachers. There are some expectations of teachers and lessons presented to students given by the district. Many professional development hours have been spent on instructing teachers about the specific things that administrators will look for as they do brief observations of classroom instruction. The expectations include teaching explicitly to the essential standards; posting of the essential standard being taught; 80% student engagement during the lesson; display of exemplary work; higher order questioning and thinking skills. Administrators collect this data and share it with grade levels and school wide to help teachers focus on areas that are lacking. Administrator walk-throughs give a quick snap shot of the type of teaching and learning taking place during a lesson and they help to build a holistic picture of the teaching methods and resources being used (Hetzner, 2011). PUSD has placed an emphasis on the strategies needed for effective lessons and, in turn, effective student learning. As a 4th grade teacher for Porterville Unified School District, my task is to create daily lesson plans that serve to guide me as I teach my students. My first step in creating these lessons is to determine my student’s level of prior knowledge. I can accomplish this by looking at formal and informal assessments and data. Observation of this data gives me a better understanding of what my next steps with my student should be. In some cases, I need to go back and reteach skills, while in other cases I can teach my students a new skill. I have to make an informed decision as to what cognitive level I need to teach to next. Awareness of how my students are performing as well as where I need to be as far as pacing and staying on track to get through all the skills needed to be taught within the year are vital to my daily task as a 4th grade teacher. As I compare my personal epistemology with that of my district, I realize that I spend more time assessing data after the lesson has been taught while the district places more emphasis on data collected during a lesson. Both of these approaches are valuable and, in fact, the district does place value on the end result (i. e. State test scores), however, there is little action that can take place after the end of the year data is collected. PUSD has placed and emphasis on good instruction because they see it as the road to a good education, as well as, the skills and goals they have set in the mission and vision statements. Our epistemologies align in that we both rely on the research of experts. I trust, as does PUSD, that the data given by experts is valuable to our own knowledge and it should guide how I teach my students. The district also views its teachers as experts in the field and has given many freedoms in the presentation and uses of resources when teaching students. As I reflect on my school districts focus as compared to me I realize that even though our epistemologies are not exactly aligned we are aligned in our focus of the students. Students come first. That means I will use whichever strategies I need to in order to create effective student learning. Reviewing test scores and planning lessons are vital to student learning, however, I have been so centered on what I am teaching that my students have not been engaged as well as they could be and thus have not learned the subject matters to their full potential. Also, although pacing is important, it should not be of top priority. Top priority should be assessing my students during the lesson and changing strategies, or even the skills being taught, if my students are not engaged. There is no point in plowing through a lesson if the majority of my students are not listening to what is being taught. This new insight will definitely help to drive my instruction and will help make me a more effective teacher. References: Achterbergh,J. , Vriens, D. (May-June 2002). Managing viable knowledge. â€Å"Systems Research and Behavioral Science. † V19i3p223 (19). Cooper, D. E. (Ed. ). (1999). Epistemology: The classic readings. Malden, MA: Blackwell. Feldman R. (2003). Epistemology. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Hetzner, Amy, 2011. Walk-throughs give school administrators firsthand view of staff in action. JSOnline: Milwaukee, Wisconsin Journal Sentinel. May 14, 2011. Retrieved on November 20, 2012 from: http://www. jsonline. com/news/education/121843078. html Porterville Unified School District, 2012 . PUSD: Vision and mission statements. Retrieved on November 20, 2012 from: http://dnn. portervilleschools. org/dotnetnuke/District/VisionMission. aspx.

The Depiction Of Amores Perros Film Studies Essay

The Depiction Of Amores Perros Film Studies Essay During the twentieth century, Mexico was experiencing an era of economic instability and an obvious division of social classes. In Amores Perros Ià ±Ãƒ ¡rritu, the director brilliantly portrays the distinction in the separation of the classes, and the effect of the economy on society. In Amores Perros, Daniel, Octavio, Susana, and El Chivo represent the three social classes in Mexico, the rich, the poor, and extreme poverty. Octavio and Susana clearly represent the lower class. Ià ±Ãƒ ¡rritu emphasizes the lack of comfort and space through the characters dialogue and setting. Perhaps the timing of release was precise, (Mexico was weeks away from its presidential elections that broke the 70 year term of one-class ruling), but Amores Perros (Gonzalez-Ià ±Ãƒ ¡rritu, 2001) a ground-breaking Mexican film under new Latin American Cinema made record-high box office success within its very first few weeks of showing. Its sheer braveness and boldness at showing reality of life in the city served to shock and reveal to millions of people how modern-day life was in the one of the busiest energy hotspots of the World; of a world brimming with positive and negative energy, that lead people to the brink of despair. The metropolis is presented as exclusively Mexican, yet one that is not dissimilar from other cities in Latin America, whereby violence, self-interest and lust are omnipresent and whereby, as much as they are fundamental to ones survival, are also the very reason for ones downfall. Ià ±arritus interpretation of the DF (Mexico City) is a reflection of society that lives in constant fear, under great pressure, and in complete turmoil, literally and psychologically. He has produced an intimate social study of the people that make up and shape the city into what it is to this day. Without exaggerating the lack of law and order, he demonstrates that for the majority of its city-dwellers, the underworld is the only option if one is to survive. The director hooks us into the diegetic world of the film by condensing into three interconnected stories the images of the general pain of daily life as well as the social, political, and economic inheritance of todays alienated youth and the elder s who have prepared this crushing scenario for them.1 Ià ±arritu decided to reveal the more sinister side of what it is like to be living in the DF, and offered the viewer a subtle criticism of the Mexican political situation that feeds the rich and abandons the poor. In certain aspects his interpretation of the city differs from the way cities are shown in other Latin American and Hollywood films. His DF is as real as real gets; you win some and you lose some, but that is simply the way life goes. An ideal comparison is that with the 2000 Hollywood film by Steven Soldbergh, Traffic, which also combines three distinct stories into one, whereby one of the plots is set in Mexico. Interestingly, the director chose to use a handheld camera for the Mexican scenes only. The Mexican story appears grainy, rough, and hot to go with the rugged Mexican landscape and congested cities (1b). Shot through a sepia lens, it gives Mexico City a feel of a sleepy, developing-world frontier city, as opposed to Ià ±arritus interpretation of a cutting-edge modern metropolis. Soldbergh contrasted the sepia-tinged Mexico with a blue tinged USA,, whilst Ià ±arritu, on the other hand, used skip bleach and tinged the images with blue. Steven Soderbergh chose Hollywood stars namely Catherine Zeta Jones, Michael Douglas and Benicio Del Toro to play the leading roles which gives an unreal sense to the film, keeping the viewers one step away from reality. It demands the viewer to accept certain ludicrous tw ists. What further sets it apart from the viewer is that the plot involves high-profile characters such as the CIA, High Court American judges, and famous drugs cartels. What sets Amores Perros apart from other films that represent the city is that the characters are real, and based on characters one would meet in the street. Most filmmakers living in Mexico City have turned a blind eye to its problems or treat them superficially and hence fail to face reality. Ià ±arritu has not. Instead he has chosen to project a broader segment of society by looking at a trilogy of situations and characters interwoven across the class lines and geographies of contemporary urban Mexican society.'(2) Gonzalez-Ià ±arritu broke the expectation that many people had with regard to their view of the future of Latin American cinema. As he said himself, I am not a Mexican with a moustache and a sombrero and a bottle of tequila () nor am I a corrupt cop or a drug trafficker. There are millions like me. And this is the world I live in and the one I want to show.'(2b) In Amores Perros Ià ±arritu shows the consequences brought on a society from a city that offers nothing but a proliferation of social injustice, political corruption and neo-liberal dogma. However, although Ià ±arritu did to some extent take on serious social and philosophical issues, Amores Perros had a principal objective to entertain. Because the film did not receive any governmental funding, Ià ±Ãƒ £rritu was able to experiment with the social and cinematographic content. Crime and violence are key themes in the film, yet, unlike Hollywood, these events are not sensationalized but instead are presented rather mundanely. The story of Octavio and Susana is the most emotionally tense of the three and involves high levels of violence, self-interest and lust. However, all the stories work together, each with its individual tone and rhythm, in order to create a fuller image of life in the city. Fast editing, such as in the dogfight scenes, forbids the viewer from obtaining a real understanding of what they are seeing, reflecting the confusion and fast-pace of city life. By overloading the film with scenes of physical titillation he manages to create an intensification of our emotions hence reflecting those of the characters on screen. Violence within the film is rife, when even Ramiro is prepared to gun down his dog, danger is constantly a threat lying just around the corner. The cross-editing that occurs when Ramiro is being beaten up and Octavio is having sex with Susana is full of dark connotations of the violence and the phenomenon of family breakdown in Mexico today. Whilst Octavio may appear innocent and peaceful, he is still inflicting pain upon his brother, who in turn will have it thrown back at him when he runs away with Susana with his savings. The violence therefore is cyclical. The scenes draw the viewer in with an over-load of violence, blood, skin and sweat, and a soundtrack of Lucha de Gigantes to emotionally move them. Ià ±arritus grainy choice of resolution and skip-bleach, together with hand-held camera, a blurry vision, artificial lights, and a blue tint, give a sense of film noir, or gangster genre, which reflects perfectly the underworld and under-class that they live in. Violence is not only a result of poverty however, as is seen within the third story, another Cane and Abel-type plot whereby Gustavo Garfias hires a hit-man, El Chivo, to murder his very own brother. A somewhat less tense sequence, El Chivos story reflects that of Octavios in many ways; both opening sequence are in a car, and both follow a Cane and Abel theme. This reoccurring family rupture accentuates the affects city life has on its inhabitants and suggests that Mexican society itself is spiralling down into a vortex of violence. The physical and psychological mutilation, amputation, death, bloodshed, and cold-blooded killers-for-hire are not merely literal images but metaphors for something even more disturbing that holds society together- our animal nature that we try and domesticate,3 and ironically so, it is the human who emerges as the most destructive. This is because they have been envenomed by greed and self-interest, but at the same time have also been made to suffer from the actions of others. The violence presented is on the one hand very believable. Via setting, cinematography, use of unknown actors and even soundtrack, Ià ±arritu has given the viewer a real sense of the violence in Mexico City. The soundtrack is filled with pulsating music, squealing automobile tyres, and alternative whimpering and barking dogs. 3b Domestic family violence, dog-fighting and shop hold-ups are common in every society, and Ramiros secret criminal hold-ups also seem very realistic, as Ià ±arritu has not glamourized them. On the other hand, one could also argue that El Chivos story is slightly too fabled from the viewers point of view. A regular middle-class man, turned Revolutionary, turned hit-man may be slightly too intangible to believe yet El Chivos methods of killing however, are very unglamourized and therefore believable. Gustavos desire to have his brother killed is purely out of self-interest and greed for money, the consequence of a neo-liberalist, capitalist world. Gustavo represents a typical young middle-class man desperately trying to preserve his social and economic status, and being consumed by envy and greed, is willing to go to great lengths in order to do this. His weak character contrasts greatly with the larger-than-life presence of El Chivo who represents the opposite end of the political spectrum, of a schoolteacher turned Revolutionary. El Chivo is the most down-to-earth character in the film, distanced from the ills of society, who has chosen dogs as his sole companions. After all, they obey, they are loyal, and they do not even protest inhumane treatment. They lick the hand of the owner to the very end.4 Dogs contrast hugely with humans in this sense. This story is an interesting insight into the life of a nobody, of a near invisible, who in fact has had the most interesting life ou t of all the characters. His life is not driven by a sense of self-interest, as the only thing he has in his mind is the loss of his daughter, and the money that he acquires from the assassinations he carries out is all for her. He owns no flash belongings, except the watch and ring he found in the dump which he considers treasures. However, at the scene of the crash, he does nothing to help the victims, but steals their money and their dog. He seems to have no patience for human beings, only a great pity and deep love for animals. He laughs when his victims are in the newspapers, but cries when his dogs are killed. This love for his dogs contrasts greatly to the brutality of treatment of the fighter dogs within Octavios story and the dog serves as a link to suggest the world in which he lives, where humans are devoured by self-interest, and where they are made to fight to their deaths. Dogs also serve as a link in which to compare the distinctively different lives of the social classes so apparent in Mexico and the rest of Latin America. Whereas Chivos dogs are pacifist and rugged, (a direct reflection of their owner,) and Octavios is made to fight, Richie, a spoilt, kemp poodle, reflects his owner, the billboard model Valeria. The majority of the principal characters have obsessive temperaments, which in the end will inevitably lead to disappointment. Octavio has little or no family ties but instead lives in a cocoon of instincts and drives which compel him to pursue his brothers wife, who herself falls victim to her own self-interest and enters an intense sexual relationship with him. Valeria is obsessed with her looks, and Gustavo with his social status. Ià ±arritu has purposely highlighted this human flaw of extreme self-interest and contrasted it with a dogs faithfulness. Valeria, whilst herself the cause of another familys break-up, has her hopes shattered with the ruin of her modelling career. When before, she would look out of her penthouse window and see herself on the billboard, she now sees it has been taken down only to be replaced with advertisement for new publicity. Her colleague who tells her to forget the campaign breaks the news with no remorse, and the cycle of self-interest falls back on her. On a film that puts so much importance on every single event running up to the crash, had Daniel never left his wife, then Valeria would never have left the house to buy a welcome gift, and the crash would never have happened. Had he overcome his feelings of self-interest and lust with regard to Valeria, there would be no tragedy in which to tell the tale. Ià ±arritu shows how in every aspect, and on every level of daily living, self-interest is insidious. It is, again, the presence of three correlating stories that helps to portray how real each characters story is whilst the characters acting is also very believable. Amores Perros oozes lust and it is this sin that causes the destruction of the family unit in the case of both Octavio and Daniel. Adultery is a recurring theme in many films, and therefore it does not offer a new vision of life in the city as such, although in a dog-eat-dog world as is that in the DF in Ià ±arritus interpretation, it is not only the good guys who is betrayed. Whilst Ramiro is having illicit sex with the girl from work, little does he know that his very brother is seducing his young wife. The cinematography of the love scene between Octavio and Susana is, as was previously mentioned, sweaty and very passionate, yet it has not been glamourized. They have sex in the laundry room at home, Ramiro with his mistress in the stock cupboard at work, and Luiz Miranda Solares with his woman in a plush motel in the city. This sexual energy so common in Mexican society is psychologically and physically destructive and can only bring about problems. On the other hand, Ià ±arritu suggests that only those who live love intensely can escape the vulgarity of their everyday existence in the city. Therefore no matter which route one takes, they are destined to an unfulfilling existence. It is perhaps because there are multiple human flaws and vices presented in this film that Ià ±arritu does not delve too deeply into the theme of adultery. The pace of the film is too fast and so is that of the city, and the resulting destruction created by adultery plays only a small part in the destruction of Mexico City as a whole. Amores Perros certainly did on the one hand offer a new vision of the city to non-Mexicans. The fact that one of the set designers was foreign herself meant that she had a very rich appreciation of Mexican culture and neither exaggerated nor minimised its presence within every aspect of the film. The city within the film is a purely Mexican phenomenon via even the smallest details, be they mundane cultural activities, style of dress, mode of speaking or behaviour. Amores Perros had no Hollywood influences nor did the Mexican government play any role in the films content. This is important in order to appreciate the balance between message and entertainment value within the film. Perhaps what makes the stories so real is how the director interweaves politics within the everyday lives of the characters, placing their individual despairs within an undeniably political setting, suggesting that there is no escaping from the environment in which one is living in. It is this reality that gives a new vision to life in the city. On the other hand, certain elements within the film do not suggest any new vision of life in the city. The exaggerated circumstances of each character leads the reader to link it with Hollywood films that employ over-dramatized plots, dramatic backing tracks, explosions, and fast editing to name a few stylistic features. Corruption and instability within everyday living are stereotypical of Mexico, and Ià ±arritu has not avoided these stereotypes. However, as they are portrayed within an everyday existence, he has avoided branding these as a Mexican phenomenon. Furthermore, it has to be said that a film with no abnormalities would be unsuccessful, for where is the excitement in this? Ià ±arritu has created an exciting film offering a new vision of the city based on violence, self-interest, and lust. Word Count: 2761 References p.86 Throwing Politics to the Dogs, by Claudia Schaefer 1b. p.87 Throwing Politics to the Dogs by Claudia Schaefer 2. p84 Throwing Politics to the Dogs, by Claudia Schaefer 2b. www.imdb.com/amoresperros p.96 Throwing Politics to the Dogs, by Claudia Schaefer 3b. p85 Throwing Politics to the Dogs, by Claudia Schaefer 4. p96. Throwing Politics to the Dogs, by Claudia Schaefer

Social Security Policy in Brazil Essay -- International Law, brazil

Brazilian social security benefits are only available to Brazilians and foreigners who have made contributions to the social security system. Some of the benefits that we will introduce and discuss are; maternity benefits, temporary incapacity or accident benefits, long-term sickness benefits, disability benefits, pensions benefits, imprisonment benefits, death benefits, and invalidity benefits. In many of the cases in order to receive benefits or assistance, the insured must have contributed to at least twelve months of working, or in the case of the old age pension at least one hundred fifty-six months of contribution are required. In some cases there are instances where the contribution is waived if the insured as hurt or injured on the job or becomes pregnant. We will also discuss the problems with the Brazilian Social Security problems and ways that we believe will improve the Brazilian Social Security Program. For the old age pension benefit the men are required to have contributed five more years of work than the women. The United States Social Security Administrative Office website states that the men must have at least thirty years of contributions. The maternity monthly benefit is paid as 100% of the workers last wage; benefits are paid to women for up to four months. Women with miscarriages get paid for two weeks. Any woman who has adopted a child under the age of one also gets paid for four months. The minimum amount paid is about 229 dollars in U.S. currency and the maximum is about 1,743 dollars in U S currency. Work injury benefits depend on the degree of risk. According to the United States Social Security Administrations Office of Retirement and Disability, the accidents that occur while commuting to and fro... ...arge like 1 or 2 percent to people who receive the welfare. Third problem that â€Å"Brazil’s National Social Security Institute (INSS) has recently published a report showing a trend of men in their 60s marrying women half their age, which is leaving a big pool of young widows collecting benefits for much longer than anticipated.† So we will question is this fair? And we believe that government can add more detail to this benefit. For example, if the women or the men are not over 50 they are not allowed to collect pension when their husband or wife pass away. Or they can collect partial pension. Works Cited http://www.oecd.org/document/37/0,3746,en_2649_34117_43225253_1_1_1_1,00.html http://www.previdenciasocial.gov.br/buscaGeral.php http://www.gwu.edu/~ibi/minerva/Fall1998/Pedro.Farias/Pedro.Farias.html http://www.lacea.org/meeting2000/ReynaldoFernandes.PDF

Essay on Symbols and Symbolism in Toni Morrisons Beloved :: Toni Morrison Beloved Essays

Symbolism in Beloved Toni Morrison enhances the effectiveness of Beloved with symbolism. This symbolism has a myriad of origins as well as forms. Number symbols come from astrological sources, while characters' names are allusions from ancient Egyptian mythology, the Bible, and African culture. Furthermore, important color symbols are discernible throughout the novel. From the very beginning of Beloved, the number 124 is distinguishable. In fact, it appears as the first character of each book of the novel. As the address of the home where most of the plot takes place, this number is extremely important. According to astrology, the numbers 1, 3, 7, and 22 are "ascribed with magical powers" (Samuels 135). These magical powers are said to be symbols of completion and creation. 124 fits this astrological delineation because the sum of the three digits in the number add up to the aforementioned 7. In addition, a significant association among characters in the novel is in the form of three people -- Sethe, Beloved, and Denver. Secondly, the name of the protagonist of the novel, Sethe, is associated with "one of the major gods of ancient Egypt and the Biblical Seth, who was the child of Adam and Eve" (Samuels 136). This Egyptian god was part man and part animal or bird, which explains the animal imagery surrounding Sethe in the novel. For example, when explaining her secret about Beloved to Paul D., Sethe is described as if she is a circling falcon or bird. Morrison writes, "She just flew...and the hummingbird wings beat on" (163). The name Sethe is also unique as a name for a female slave because it is derived from the names of Egyptian and Biblical males. Morrison uses the name to add to the masculinity of Sethe's character. Sethe's ability to overcome overwhelming tragedies and challenges such as her escape from slavery in Kentucky and the murder of her child identifies her with this quality. Additionally, the name Sixo symbolizes the dehumanization of slaves during the late 19th century. His name, derived from the number 6, implies that white masters didn't consider their slaves with enough respect to recognize them with more than a number. This renaming also symbolizes the power the slaveowners felt by stripping slaves of their individuality. The distinction of color in slavery adds to the color symbolism which pervades Beloved.

Turkeys Strategic Geographical Location In The World of Geo-Politics E

Turkey's Strategic Geographical Location In The World of Geo-Politics The country of Turkey, slightly larger than Texas in size (780,580 sq km), lies on the southeastern side of Europe and the southwestern side of Asia.? It borders the Black Sea, the Aegean Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea.? Land wise, Turkey is bordered to the northwest by Bulgaria and Greece, to the east by Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia (all three part of the former USSR) and Iran, and to the south by Iraq and Syria.? Strategically located, Turkey controls the Turkish straights including the Bosphorus, Sea of Marmara, and Dardanelles.? Because Turkey is positioned on an area where Europe meets Asia and is very close geographically to Africa, the country provides a link between these three continents. The European part of the country is named Thrace, while the Asian part is known as Anatolia.? Throughout history, Turkey, especially Anatolia, has been a prominent center of commerce because of its land connections to three continents and the sea surrounding it on three sides (?Tur key at a Glance?).? Additionally, Turkey?s geographical location plays an important role in the geo-politics of Europe and Asia not just as a crucial land bridge between Europe and Asia but as an integral part of the prosperous Mediterranean economy, a center for trade, and a critical link to the sea for Russia and the Ukraine.? In the past, Turkey?s geographic location has been the center of the Byzantine and Ottoman Empires and has acted as a fortress against an expanding Soviet Union and more recently an expanding Iraq (Larson). Turkey?s Role in ?Operation Iraqi Freedom? Within the past year, Turkey has played a vital role in ?Operation Iraqi Freedom. The United ... ...ews. 10 Dec. 2003 Stanford, Dick. ?Panel Discussion, Turkey's Relationship and Foreign Policy Issues with ?her Neighbors and the European Union.? 12 June 2003. Accessed on 22 Nov. 2003.< http://facweb.furman.edu/~dstanford/med04/topic3.htm> Stanford, Dick. ?Water Control Issues in the Eastern Mediterranean region.? 13 June ? 2003. Accessed on 22 Nov. 2003. ?Turkey at a Glance.? Google. 10 Dec. 2003 ?Turkey Belongs in Europe.? The Economist 7 Dec. 2003: LexisNexis Acadmic: News. ?10 Dec. 2003 ?Turkey, Iraq, Sign Protocol to Boost Trade.? Turkish Daily News 22 Nov. 2003: LexisNexis Acadmic: News. 10 Dec. 2003 Turkey's Strategic Geographical Location In The World of Geo-Politics E Turkey's Strategic Geographical Location In The World of Geo-Politics The country of Turkey, slightly larger than Texas in size (780,580 sq km), lies on the southeastern side of Europe and the southwestern side of Asia.? It borders the Black Sea, the Aegean Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea.? Land wise, Turkey is bordered to the northwest by Bulgaria and Greece, to the east by Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia (all three part of the former USSR) and Iran, and to the south by Iraq and Syria.? Strategically located, Turkey controls the Turkish straights including the Bosphorus, Sea of Marmara, and Dardanelles.? Because Turkey is positioned on an area where Europe meets Asia and is very close geographically to Africa, the country provides a link between these three continents. The European part of the country is named Thrace, while the Asian part is known as Anatolia.? Throughout history, Turkey, especially Anatolia, has been a prominent center of commerce because of its land connections to three continents and the sea surrounding it on three sides (?Tur key at a Glance?).? Additionally, Turkey?s geographical location plays an important role in the geo-politics of Europe and Asia not just as a crucial land bridge between Europe and Asia but as an integral part of the prosperous Mediterranean economy, a center for trade, and a critical link to the sea for Russia and the Ukraine.? In the past, Turkey?s geographic location has been the center of the Byzantine and Ottoman Empires and has acted as a fortress against an expanding Soviet Union and more recently an expanding Iraq (Larson). Turkey?s Role in ?Operation Iraqi Freedom? Within the past year, Turkey has played a vital role in ?Operation Iraqi Freedom. The United ... ...ews. 10 Dec. 2003 Stanford, Dick. ?Panel Discussion, Turkey's Relationship and Foreign Policy Issues with ?her Neighbors and the European Union.? 12 June 2003. Accessed on 22 Nov. 2003.< http://facweb.furman.edu/~dstanford/med04/topic3.htm> Stanford, Dick. ?Water Control Issues in the Eastern Mediterranean region.? 13 June ? 2003. Accessed on 22 Nov. 2003. ?Turkey at a Glance.? Google. 10 Dec. 2003 ?Turkey Belongs in Europe.? The Economist 7 Dec. 2003: LexisNexis Acadmic: News. ?10 Dec. 2003 ?Turkey, Iraq, Sign Protocol to Boost Trade.? Turkish Daily News 22 Nov. 2003: LexisNexis Acadmic: News. 10 Dec. 2003

Health History Essay

Health assessment thus plays an important role to provide information about one’s health. Assessment is the first step in the nursing process and includes collection, verification, organization, interpretation and documentation of data. (Sue C. DeLaune and Patriciak . Ladner,2011) Almost every admitted patient the first time required the implementation of the health assessment to determine their health condition to enable healthcare plans and implementation what they need to do. On way of organizing the information that nurse need to collect is by using a nursing framework . A framework for assessment , the nurse systematically collecting the physical, psychological, socio cultural and different aspects of the activities of living. There are a number of organizing frameworks for collection of data. For example, the Gordon’s functional health patterns. Many health care agencies use an admission assessment format which assists the nurse in collecting data in specific categories of functioning. Richard Hogston and Penelope M. Simpson,2002) Most of the hospital and health care agencies have developed their own structured assessment tools. The following will be relatively compare by using Gordon’s Functional Health Patterns as framework between the assessment from health care setting is currently using about interview on an adult. Compare these two interviews in term of structure, comprehensiveness, and applicability. Structure  Gordon’s functional health patterns, which are consistent with the human need philosophy, can provide a framework for nursing education. The eleven functional health patterns identified by Gordon’s are as follow: Health Perception and Management, Activity and Exercise, Nutrition and Metabolism, Elimination, Sleep and Rest, Congnition and Perception, Self-Perception and Self-Concept, Roles and Relationships, Coping and stress Management, Sexuality and Reproduction, Values and Beliefs. Carol R. Taylor, Priscilla Lemone, Carol Lillis, Pamcla Lynn, 2008) These functional health patterns areas allow gathering and clustering of information about a patient’s usual patterns and any recent changes in order to decide if the patient’s response is functional or dysfunctional. If the assessment is effective or positive that will not have to deal. If the results of the assessment is invalid or negative that will have to deal with through nursing care plan. The assessment from health care setting which are consistent with Profile such as name, age, sex, religion, reason for seeking healthcare, family history, allergy history, health history, current health status, self-care ability, general condition, consciousness, communicative ability, language, nutritional state, skin state, limbs, special senses, emotional state, daily habits ,leisure, introduction of environment, use of facilities, religion and risk assessment . The assessment from health care setting as the same as Gordon’s functional assessment are including Health-Perception Health-Management, Elimination, Nutritional-Metabolic, Activity- exercise, Value-belief patterns and Sleep-rest. Not the same as Gordon’s functional assessment form, the assessment from health care did not mention of Congnitive- Perception, Self-Perception-Self Concept, Role-Relationship, Sexuality-Reproductive and Coping-Stress-Tolerance. The assessment form health care setting can be divided into seven section including Biographical data, Reason for seeking health care provider, History of present health concern, Rest health history, Family health history, review of body systems for current health problem, life-style and health practices profile. The Gordon’s functional pattern mainly is open-ended questions such as have you religions beliefs helped you to deal with problems in the past? How? Contrary, the assessment from health care setting mainly is closed-ended question such as what is your religion. The Gordon’s functional health patterns is more concentrated. Each type of health patterns divided into objective and subjective information. The assessment from health care setting structure is more untrammeled. The same types of problems can be classified into different types of items such as nutritional state it can be combine with diet of daily habits. Comprehensiveness Gordon’s functional health patterns is a method devised by Marjory Gordon to be used by the nurse in the nursing process to provide more comprehensive assessment of the patient. Gordon emphasizes that the eleven functional patterns artificially divided integrated human functioning. Eleven functional health patterns described as follows. Health Perception and Health Management. It’s focused on the person’s perceived level of health and well-being, and on practices for maintaining health. Nutritional Metabolic Pattern it’s focused on the pattern of food and fluid consumption relative to metabolic need. Elimination Pattern. It’s focused on excretory patterns (bowel, bladder, skin). Activity and Exercise Pattern. It’s focused on the activities of daily living requiring energy expenditure, including self-care activities, exercise, and leisure activities. Cognitive-Perceptual Pattern. It’s focused on the ability to comprehend and use information and on the sensory functions. Neurologic functions, Sensory experiences such as pain and altered sensory input. Sleep Rest Pattern. It’s focused on the person’s sleep, rest, and relaxation practices. Self-Perception-Self-Concept Pattern its focused on the person’s attitudes toward self, including identity, body image, and sense of self-worth. Role-Relationship Pattern. It’s focused on the person’s roles in the world and relationships with others. Sexuality and Reproduction. It’s focused on the person’s satisfaction or dissatisfaction with sexuality patterns and reproductive functions. Coping-Stress Tolerance Pattern. its focused on the person’s perception of stress and coping strategies Support systems, evaluated symptoms of stress, effectiveness of a person’s coping strategies. Value-Belief Pattern it’s focused on the person’s values and beliefs. (Janet Weber, Jane Kelly ,1998) Indeed, Gordon’s functional health pattern can reflect the potential of the patient health problem. The assessment from health care setting is less comprehensive than Gordon’s patterns. The assessment from health institution reflect the patient’s admission status, previous health status, daily habits and risk assessment. The form are lack of assess such as congnitive and percepyual, sexuality and reproductive, role and relationship, self-perception and self concept, coping and stress. It is not difficult to find Gordon functional assessment are more detailed than assessment form health care setting. For example, Gordon functional assessment including nutritional metabolic that it contain skin examination. Mucous membranes, edema status, thyroid status, gag reflex and assess jugular vein distention etc. On the contrary, the assessment from health institution about nutritional status can only choose normal or abnormal. It is lack of sufficient information than Gordon’s patterns. In addition, the case of infertility patient often leads to significant pressure for fear of failed surgery. After the embryo transfer, she have to face with the failure of implantation. Both physically and mentally cause to great pressure. According Gordon’s assessment, form coping –stress tolerance pattern, it is able to know patient was very unhappy because of infertility. Patient thought it is too much pressure if the embryo cannot implantation. Nurse can give psychological counseling to the patient that allows patient to reduce stress through assessment. In comparison of assessment from health institution, it is not mention about coping-stress tolerance patterns. So there is no assess of the infertility patient that need to take care of their psychologic problem. Compare with two different assessment form, Gordon’s patterns was more comprehensive than assessment from health institution, but it is not the most comprehensive assessment. If two new domains add to the assessment tool safety/protection and growth/development that the assessment will become more complete. Safety/Protection for a risk of injury as a result of the interaction of environmental conditions interacting with the individual’s adaptive and defensive resources. (Wilson Giddens,2001) Growth and Development for altered physical growth, typical of age group, inability to perform self –care or self control activities appropriate for age etc. (Wilson Giddens,2001) Through these two items that nurse can prevent some of risk environment and assess patient growth/development to let nurse understanding what problem patient have be exist. Applicability Gordon’s patterns can provide extensive and detailed information that can reflect patient’s health status but it is very time-consuming and may have to one hour or more. It is not difficult to imagine that nurse have to deal with numerous new patients in each day. The situation is difficult to use Gordon’s patterns to assess patient’s condition in the limited manpower especially at the night duty. Second, patient discharged from hospital earlier than before because based on cost-effectiveness and patient well-being. For example in-vitro fertilization(IVF), colonoscopy, inguinal hernia such as this operation usually encourage patients rest in the day care center replace of stay in the hospital for a few day. This situation need nurse faster and more efficient assess of the patient condition. Third, patient admitted to hospital in a critical situation simply can not conduct a detailed physical assessment. In this situation like cardiac arrest, choking, an immediate diagnosis is needed to provide prompt treatment. That why initial comprehensive assessment like Gordon’s assessment is not suitable for this condition. Fourth, the patient’s disease information may have already obtained by the attending doctor before patient admission. Therefore it is not meaningful for the nurse to collect the same health’s information. The nurse can more in-depth to assess patient base on the information obtained by doctors. For this IVF case, it suggest using a assessment from institution. Compare with Gordon’s assessment, it easy showed cause of admission and patient;s general condition. The Gordon’s assessment of many question is irrelevant. For example, general appearance is no need to assess for the IVF case. On the other hand ,embryo transfer just a minor surgery that patient are not request stay in hospital . Using simple assessment like assessment from institution for the sake of save more time and work more effectively. Gordon’s assessment is more complex than assessment from institution so assessment from institution it is more applicable than Gordon’s assessment form. Conclusion There are many nursing assessment frameworks have been developed. The most widely used organize frameworks for nursing diagnoses it based on functional health patterns described by Gordon. Using systematic guidelines specifically developed for a nursing assessment ensures that comprehensive, holistic data are collected for each patient. Health care institutions establish a minimum data set that specifies the information that must be collective from every patient and use a structured assessment form to organize or cluster this data. A nurse chooses a particular framework for a variety of reason. Choice may be based on what is used in the particular health care institution or nursing needs of a particular patient population.

Don Quixote Essay

Quixotism is the ability of being caught up in the fable of pursuing some unrealistic goals or deeds. It is a world which is commonly used to describe idealism without looking at the practical side of the act. It is therefore related to â€Å"over- idealism†, something which does not consider the consequences or outcome of what somebody is doing. An act of impetuous person can be described as quixotic. This can be generally described as the ability to maintain ones ideals despite evidence to the contrary. The title character of Don Quixote is a great example of the concept of Quixotism. The prominent questions here are whether Don Quixote is sane or if â€Å"his mind dried up and went completely out of his mind† (2227). The truth is that Cervantes uses the sub-themes of an insane knight, idealism, and devotion to depict other major themes which are complex. That is why the characters exhibit incidents which are surfeit and unforgettable, happenings which are comic and tragic, but tries to present this in a significant manner. This character is actually mentally sound and he is a character who was built by the author, as a way of portraying the Spanish society in the era of sixteenth century. The text is full of quaint humor, and the author uses this in advancing his plot and the themes, which on the other hand comes out from Don Quixote. Don Quixote depicts renaissance in reality and tries to satirize the middle ages chivalric traditions by depicting them as absurd and archaic. This is a noble Spaniard who is being presented as crazy by the author intentionally, and he picks up his role as a good character and actor. He tries to revive the glamour of knighthood which was there â€Å"for the protection of damsels, the aid of windows and orphans, and the succoring of the needy† (2262) and it is evident that Cervantes does not care about the impossible dreams. The character refuses to face reality and the facts of life though he knows that what he ventures into is unrealistic and unachievable. As soon as he had seen the windmills, Don Quixote said to his squire â€Å"fortune is guiding our affairs better than we could have wished; for you see there before you (†¦) some thirty or more lawless giants with whom I mean to battle† (2247). Additionally, his relatives try to take the chivalric romances away as a way of rescuing him because they think that was all that drove him mad. On the contrary, he opts to escape with Sancho Panza whom is believed to be a good deal saner though little learned. The two characters venture into funny dreams but are different in character. According to Don Quixote knights should not complain of any pain because they are meant to bear wounds even when â€Å"their bowels may be dropping out† (2249). On the other hand, Sancho belives that he has to complain about any minor pain as God knows it, â€Å"unless the same rule applies to squires as well† (2249). For Don Quixote life is like a theater and everyone is playing a part in it. Even that life is serious always emotions are playing a big part. Don Quixote’s imagination allowed him to create a vision of a world which was more colorful, exciting, adventurous and poetic. It was for him a way to live a life because as he said: â€Å"when life is done, death takes from each the garb that differentiates him, and all at last are equal in the grave† (2307). He was a man who refused to be unhappy. The average life just got too monotonous for him, but instead of suffering, he did what most people are not brave enough to do. He reinvented his life to make it something that he was joyful living, no matter how crazy it seemed to others, because â€Å"the greatest madness that a man can be guilty of in this life is to die without good reason† (2348).He had always wanted to be a knight and one day he became one. He possessed the courage to follow his dreams, regardless of the judgment of others. The concept of Quixotism has been very well revealed in the text because Don Quixote knows very well who he is, the age he lives in, and he wants to revive the knight- errantry to be an â€Å"righter of wrongs, avenger of injustices, protector of damsels, terror of giants, and champion of battles† (2293). He wants to remain firm on his ideas and believes despite the facts from the parallel side which he knows well. From his quote â€Å"I know who I am, and who I may be, if I choose† (2244), he explains the fact that he is very sane and he knows what he is doing. His insanity is known to him and very intentional just like the character Hamlet in Shakespeare’s work. The author was being creative and exploring on the themes of idealism, which is best seen from Don Quixote character who is a â€Å"flower of chivalry† (2296). He is therefore being quixotic, and Cervantes asks us: do we consider the practicality of the goals we venture into? It is a good text with lessons on the pursuit of unrealistic goals in life. We should not have condescending attitudes towards nonconformists or judge other people, because one man’s genius is another man’s insanity, just as one man’s giant is another man’s windmill.