Chocolate Outline Essay Example for Free

Chocolate Outline Essay Specific Purpose: To inform my audience about the health benefits of chocolate Central Idea: Chocolate is one of the oldest treats around; that has some beneficial health factors to it. Introduction I. Attention-Getting a. When I was younger I would sneak a piece of dark chocolate in right before dinner†¦ Made me feel a little naughty! Of course my dad would always catch me and ask â€Å"where’s my piece? † and we’d eat it together. It was our little secret. How many of you have ever done this? To this day I still get that feeling! II. Credibility a. Chocolate has been my favorite ever since I was little and have enjoyed the different tastes, textures and health benefits behind it. III. Preview a. History of Chocolate b. Different Types of Chocolate c. Health Benefits of Chocolate Body I. History of Chocolate a. 1500 BC -400 BC Olmec Indians were first to from Cocoa Beans as Domestic Crop. Civilization only lasted 300 B. C. b. 600 AD Mayans migrate Central South America establish cocoa plantation c. 14th Century: Aztecs upper classes who usurped the Mayan drink taxed the beans drank chocolate drink, because it supposedly healed the soul. d. Aztecs restricted the drink to priests, nobles, kings, queens, officials and worriers. (showed of sign of higher class) e. 1502 Columbus entered Mayan trading channel and bring back cocoa beans to King Ferdinand ? (4th visit to New World) as it was over looked to the other treasures. f. 1519-1570 Heran Cortes a Spanish, went to Vera Cruz, Mexico and was mistaken for the god (the god who gave the Aztecs the cocoa beans and taught how to cultivate it) he conquered Aztec empire returned to King Charles V. g. Cortes kept Aztec tradition and heavily taxed the chocolate so only rich can afford it ? the chocolate drink was told to heal the soul and to keep you healthy from bad diseases. From then on chocolate became a profitable industry. II. Types of Chocolate a. White Chocolate: made of cocoa butter, sugar, milk, emulsifier, vanilla, and some other extras. No non-fat ingredients causing to have off-white shade. b. Dark Chocolate: high in cocoa solids-0% milk-12% c. Semi-Sweet Chocolate: the original dark chocolate, used for baking, 40-62 % cocoa solids, (diff is 35-45% cocoa solids) d. Bitter Sweet Chocolate: 35% cocoa solids, other varieties of it have 60-85% cocoa solids, high in cocoas, low in sugar. e. Milk Chocolate: 10% cocoa liquor/ butter/ sugar/ 12% milk, cream. III. Health Benefits of Chocolate a. California Academy of Science: Did studies on chocolate! i. Chocolate elevates your mood ii. Chocolate prevents/delays damage to cells tissues. Compounds from cacao plant (red wine, tea, fruits, and veg. ) had antioxidants that believe to prevent any damage to the body. b. USA TODAY: Reports Chocolate reduced your risk of heart attack and stroke. i. Dr. Oscar Franco’s research says chocolate reduced risk by 37 % and lowers risk of diabetes by 31% and stroke by 29% . Eat in Moderation. c. A study was done by West Virginia researcher Whelling Jesuit found that chocolate simulates the brain and can improve cognitive performance. IV. Health Risks of Chocolate a. According to the New York Times, Chocolate can disrupt sleep if you eat it right before bed-contains nine or more milligrams of caffeine. Chocolate is a stimulant and increases your heart rate. b. Can cause acne and obesity if not eating in moderation! Conclusion I. Review a. Now that your practically waiting to get your hand on chocolate- i. You’ve learned it’s sweet history. ii. The Different Types of Chocolate There Are iii. The Health Benefits Risks of Eating Chocolate II. Closing a. Dark Chocolate or Milk Chocolate b. What is your favorite kind of chocolate? Works Cited California Academy of Science. Terrence M. Gosliner, n. d. Web. 2013. . Facts About Chocolate. LaShelle, n. d. Web. 2013. . The Nibble. Ellen Cooper Edelman, n. d. Web. 2013. . OCONNOR, ANAHAD. Chocolate can be disruptive to sleep. The New York Times, sec. D: 5. LexisNexis Academic. Web. 2 Oct. 2013. . USA Today. Steven Reinberg, 29 Aug. 2011. Web.

Song Of Solomon :: essays research papers

From Beginning to End Toni Morrison begins her novel Song of Solomon in a very unconventional way. Instead of introducing a setting or characters, she retells an incident that without further reading is for the most part incomprehensible. As readers we notice later on in the story the references made throughout the book that relate back to the introductory pages. Some of the main themes such as oral traditions, naming, and especially flight are introduced in the first six pages and are further developed in a very similar format throughout the book. One of the outstanding themes, oral tradition, is used to retell events throughout the book in a manner consistent with the beginning. On the first page we are introduced to an insurance agent by the name of Robert Smith. We shortly thereafter learn that he will "fly" form the top of Mercy Hospital. On the Wednesday of his flight a group of fifty people gather around the building to witness this event. While waiting for his "flight" or jump a woman in a contralto voice begins to sing the words "O Sugarman done fly away/ Sugarman done gone/ Sugarman cut across the sky/ Sugarman gone home…"(6) This lady simply describes Robert Smith's flight "home" which we later learn is really him committing suicide. Much later on in the book Milkman is listening to a group of children singing "O Solomon done fly away/ Solomon done gone/ Solomon cut across the sky/ Solomon gone home."(3) In this song Sugarman, or Robert Smith, is replac ed by Solomon, or the Great Grandfather of Milkman. The song describes his "flight" from Shalimar, his home town, and the events that happened after his "flight." In general, oral traditions are used in this book to retell past events for both our understanding and for the characters. They take the form of song, story, and fairy tale and are very important to the meaning of the story because they are a major medium of narration. Naming is utilized throughout the book for the purpose of creating identification and symbolism for the characters and places. On page four a brief description is given about the history of Mains Ave., or Not Doctor Street., as called by the Southside community. It is called Not Doctor Street. because a prominent black doctor had once lived there, and the people living there always referred to it as Doctor Street.

Factors Contributing to Disproportionate Minority Representation in Special Education

The disproportionate representation of minority students in special education has been a constant and consistent concern for nearly four decades (Klingner et al. , 2005). Currently, there are disproportionate numbers of minority students who are referred, assessed, identified, classified, and placed in programs for students with disabilities. The issue of disproportionate representation for minority students has been and continues to be an incessant dilemma that has detrimental effects on the educational opportunities and outcomes for this specific group of students.Concerns about disproportionate representation are focused on the â€Å"judgmental† categories of special education (learning disabilities, emotional disturbance, and mental retardation), those disabilities usually identified after the child starts school and by school personnel rather than a medical professional. Children identified with these disabilities usually do not exhibit any obvious discernible features, y et they are still considered to have internal deficits that affect their learning and/ or behavior (Klingner, et al. , 2005).One of the earlier discussions on disproportionality (Heller, Holtzman, & Messick, 1982) noted that it cannot be assumed that ethnic disproportionality in special education is a problem, since it could be that certain groups of students require special education services in greater amounts than those from other ethnic categories. The panel declared that â€Å"the adequacy and appropriateness† of all phases of the special education process as well as the outcome had to be determined before recognizing disproportionality as a problem.The existence of bias or inappropriate practice at any phase of the process was the feature that would determine that disproportionality was indeed problematic. In its 26th Annual Report to Congress, the U. S. Department of Education (2005) presented the percentage of students ages 6 through 21 who were served under IDEA by d isability and race/ethnicity. Specific learning disability was the largest disability category for all racial/ethnic groups.Hispanic/Latino children represented the largest racial/ethnic group (58. 3%) diagnosed with a specific learning disability. American Indian/Alaskan Native students were the next highest group (55. 3%) identified with a specific learning disability. The highest percentage of minority students served under IDEA for mental retardation was African American/Black (16. 8%). Mental retardation can be defined as sub-average intellectual functioning that concurrently exists with deficits in adaptive behavior.Similarly, African American/Black students also represented the highest percentage of children served under the category of emotionally disturbed students (11. 3%) (U. S. Department of Education, 2005). It is critical to note that the existence of this problem has been repeatedly documented by the U. S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR), in th at it has confirmed the overrepresentation of minority students in special education programs with data for the past thirty years.In addition, the issue of determining whether students of different racial or ethnic groups are disproportionately identified for special education has been a longstanding public and professional concern; however, the causes of disproportionality and factors contributing to this problem are not clearly understood (Donovan & Cross, 2002). Thus, this paper aims to examine factors contributing to disproportionality of minority in special education. Firstly, the paper examines historical background of disproportionality problem. Finally, some conclusive remarks are presented.History of the Disproportionality Problem The problem of overrepresentation of minority students in special education is not a new phenomenon and has been a serious concern for the last 40 years. Dunn (1968) cited statistics from the U. S. Office of Education and concluded â€Å"about 60 % to 80% of students in mild mental retardation classes were from low status backgrounds, including African Americans, American Indians, Mexicans, and Puerto Rican Americans; those from nonstandard English speaking, disorganized and inadequate homes; and children from nonmiddle class environments† (p.6). Mercer (1973) documented disproportionate representation of minority students in special education classes in Riverside, California. She concluded that the percentage of African Americans placed in special classes for students diagnosed with mental retardation was three times their percentage in the population. In a similar manner, the percentage of Mexican American students placed in classes for mentally retarded children was four times their percentage in the population (Mercer, 1973). The overrepresentation problem has also been documented over time through court cases.Two notable cases, Diana v. State Board of Education (1970) and Larry P. v. Riles (1971) dealt with issues related to assessment bias, disproportionate placement, and the long-term consequences of special education placement (Donovan & Cross, 2002). Larry P. v. Riles (1979) was a class action suit on behalf of African American/Black students in the San Francisco Public School System who were placed in mildly mentally retarded education programs. At that time African American/Black students represented 28.5% of the district's student enrollment, but 67% of the students in mildly mentally retarded programs were African American/Black. The plaintiffs argued that intelligence tests were culturally biased. The court ruled that intelligence tests were culturally biased against African American/Black students and that reliance on biased instruments was related to the overrepresentation problem. Overrepresentation of certain ethnic minority groups, such as African Americans/Blacks or Hispanics/Latinos, in certain special education environments is a serious problem for a number of reasons.Heller , Holtzman, and Messick (1982) stated that disproportionality is a problem if children are invalidly placed in programs for mentally retarded children, if they are unduly exposed to the likelihood of such placement by virtue of having received poor regular education, or if the quality and academic relevance of the special instruction blocks students' educational progress, including decreasing the likelihood of their return to the regular education classroom. In their review of the literature, Hosp and Reschly (2003) discussed three main reasons why disproportionate representation in special education is problematic.Such reasons include negative effects of labeling, segregation of placement, and presumed ineffectiveness of special education (Hosp & Reschly, 2003). For example, labeling a child handicapped has been found to reduce teachers' expectancy for the child to succeed (Dunn, 1968). Furthermore, removing a child from regular education to special education may contribute signifi cantly to feelings of inferiority and problems with acceptance by peers (Dunn, 1968). Factors Contributing to Disproportionate RepresentationSeveral variables related to the disproportionate representation of some students in special education have been documented in the literature. Specifically, research has examined possible reasons that might explain the overrepresentation of minorities in special education including bias in the referral process, bias in assessment tools, English Language Proficiency of a child, poverty, gender, race, and poor academic achievement (Hosp & Reschly, 2004). Referral process One factor that may contribute to disproportionality involves the referral process for special education.Referral for assessment has been cited as an important predictor of subsequent special education placement (Ysseldyke, Vanderwood, & Shriner, 1997). Ysseldyke et al. (1997) found that 90% to 92% of referred students are tested and 70% to 74% of tested students were then declar ed eligible for special education placement. Thus, if a child is referred to a multidisciplinary team for special education eligibility consideration, there is a high probability that the student will be identified with a disability and be placed in a special education program.One possible explanation for overidentification of students for special education may be due to the information processing strategies of multidisciplinary team decision makers, which can cause the presence of a confirmatory bias (O'Reilly et al. , 1989). Confirmatory bias can occur when the multidisciplinary team decision makers have a tendency to gather information that confirms a hypothesis that is being tested and ignores contradictory information. This can result in special education decisions that are not based on objective evidence and lead to inappropriate placements.Thus, if teachers are biased in their referral decisions, psychologists may confirm already flawed judgments (Podwell & Soodak, 1993). In terms of demographics, research has shown that teachers over refer African American, Hispanic/Latino, and American Indian/Alaskan Native males to programs for students with learning disabilities, emotional/behavioral problems, speech and language disorders, and mild cognitive disorders in comparison to female and White middle class students (Grossman, 1995).The majority of teachers nationwide are White; therefore cultural misunderstanding of expectations may affect referral rates of non-White students (Hosp & Reschly, 2003). For example, differences between students and teachers in learning style, verbal style, social style, and cultural information has been suggested to account for some proportion of minority students poor school performance which may lead to referral and subsequent placement in special education (Harry, 1994). Assessment procedures Overrepresentation could also be a result of bias in the assessment procedures used to identify students for special education.Assessm ent procedures that are not suited to the diverse characteristics of the students evaluated may result in misleading and biased information about their academic abilities (Grossman, 1995). For example, unfamiliarity with the assessment process may invalidate results. Grossman (1995) cited research that African American/Black and Hispanic/Latino children may be more anxious during assessments to the point that the anxiety interferes with performance because they are not familiar with the assessment process.Today, more minority children continue to be placed into special education on the basis of intelligence tests, even though it has been suggested that intelligence instruments as a basis for placement are imperfect and unfair (Agbenyega & Jiggetts, 1999). The validity and reliability of intelligence tests has been discussed when such measures are used with minority students (Reschly & Grimes, 2002). Intelligence tests are valid only if they measure a student's ability to learn and t o predict how the student will function in specific learning situations (Grossman, 1995).Furthermore, since the reliability of many assessments is established by studying their use with White students, they may be unreliable when used with non-White students (Grossman, 1995). It has been asserted that intelligence tests reflect the cultural knowledge base and cognitive and linguistic orientations of their creators (Harry, Klinger, Sturges, & Moore, 2002). Intelligence tests have been criticized as being culturally, socially, and racially biased because they reflect White, middle class values and experiences and therefore, are not applicable to minority children (Agbenyega & Jiggetts, 1999).It has been suggested that traditional measures of intelligence are not biased if certain standards are met. For example, standards should require a rigorous implementation of procedural safeguards in the referral, classification, and placement process; implementation of multifactored assessments designed to identify specific educational needs by a group of professionals; and programming and placement decisions made by a team that included professionals and parents (Reschly & Grimes, 2002).Nevertheless, there are concerns about using intelligence measures like the Wechsler scales in making identification decisions. Such concerns include that different environments provide different preparation for the test, the narrow item content of the test, and negative outcomes associated with the use of intelligence tests (Reschly & Grimes, 2002). Therefore, the use of more culturally fair measures of cognitive processing, such as the CAS, may be an important step in addressing the disproportionality problem in special education.English Language Proficiency Since most standardized tests are administered in English and normed on proficient English speakers, a linguistic bias may also invalidate the results of an evaluation if the assessment is conducted in a language that the student is not proficient in. For example, English Language Learners have been found to perform lower than proficient English speakers on standardized assessments in reading, science, and mathematics (Abedi, 2002).However, the performance gap between English Language Learners and proficient English speakers was greatest in content areas that required a higher language demand (i. e. , reading) and less or almost non-existent in content areas that required less language demand (i. e. , mathematic computation). The linguistic complexity of the actual test items, unrelated to the content being assessed, may be a reason for poorer performance for English Language Learners on standardized tests.Thus, these tests may function more as an English proficiency test than a test of ability or achievement (Abedi, 2002). This problem can impact special education identification and placement because there are very few school psychologists who are bilingual and are able to provide linguistically appropriate as sessment services in the school (Grossman, 1995). The consideration of English Language Proficiency is important since it is estimated that more than 3. 5 million children in U. S. schools have Limited English Proficiency (U.S. Census Bureau, 2003). However, there has been limited research on the representation of English Language Learners in special education programs since state departments of education often do not gather data about language proficiency of students in special education. Artiles et al. (2005) assessed the magnitude of disproportionate representation of English Language Learners in 11 urban California school districts. Placement patterns at the elementary level indicated an absence of overrepresentation in special education.However, overrepresentation of English Language Learners was detected at the end of elementary school (4th grade) and continued through the high school years. Children who demonstrated limited proficiency in their native language as well as in E nglish had the highest rate of identification in high incidence special education categories (i. e. , learning disability). Impact of gender Other variables have also been examined to evaluate their influence on the disproportionate representation of minority students in special education.For example, recent research has looked at gender as a predictor of special education placement (Coutinho & Oswald, 2005; Coutinho et al. , 2002). In general, gender disproportionality has been found to exist in special education with male students more likely to be overrepresented in special education. Boys are about twice as likely as girls to be identified with a learning disability and almost three and half times more likely to be identified with a serious emotional disturbance (Coutinho & Oswald, 2005). Coutinho et al.(2002) investigated the extent of disproportionality among students with a learning disability and described the relationship between ethnicity, gender, and socio-demographic var iables (i. e. , poverty indicators, Limited English Proficiency status, parent education, etc. ). The findings showed an association between ethnicity, gender and the odds of being identified as a student with a learning disability. White, African American/Black, American Indian/Alaskan Native, and Hispanic/Latino males were all at least twice as likely as White females to receive special education.African American/Black and Hispanic/Latino females were essentially as likely as White females to receive special education. American Indian/Alaskan Native females were more likely than White females to receive special education. Asian males and females were both less likely than White females to receive special education services (Coutinho et al. , 2002). In addition to student characteristics, results indicated that socio-demographic characteristics were important in determining the likelihood of being identified as learning disabled.However, the impact of the socio-demographic characte ristics was found to be different for each gender-ethnicity group. For example, increased poverty was associated with increased identification of a learning disability for African American/Black, Hispanic/Latino, and male Asian students. For White and American Indian/Alaskan Native students, increased poverty was associated with lower identification rates (Coutinho et al. , 2002). Economic, demographic, and achievement factors Oswald et al.(1999) examined the influence of economic and demographic variables on the identification of minority students for special education. The study examined the extent U. S. school districts displayed patterns of disproportionate presentation in the identification of minority students as mildly mentally retarded (MMR) and serious emotional disturbance (SED). It also analyzed the extent disproportionate representation at the district level is predicted by other district characteristics including school characteristics and demographic and economic facto rs (Oswald et al. , 1999).Oswald et al. (1999) used predictor variables that included median housing value, median income, percentage of children below the poverty level, percentage of adults in the community with a 12th grade education or less, percentage of children enrolled in school who are considered â€Å"at risk† (i. e. , from a single parent home, below the poverty level, and where the mother does not have a high school diploma or GED); and percentage of children who were Limited English Proficient. Race of the student was classified as African American/Black or non-African American/non-Black.Results indicated that African American/Black students were 2. 4 times more likely to be identified as MMR and approximately 1. 5 times more likely to be identified as SED than non-African American/Black students. Additionally, environmental and demographic variables were found to be significant predictors of identification of students as MMR or SED. For example, as poverty and d rop-out levels increased, more African Americans/Blacks were identified as MMR, but less were classified as SED.Furthermore, there was a disproportionate number of African American/Black students classified as SED in wealthier communities. It was suggested that these results may indicate that wealthier communities are more tolerant of cognitive impairments and less tolerant of emotionally challenging behaviors of African Americans/Blacks (Oswald et al. , 1999). Poor academic achievement is often a reason for referral and eventual placement in special education.Hosp and Reschly (2004) hypothesized that differences in academic achievement between racial and ethnic groups may lead to differences in referral and subsequent placement rates for special education. These researchers expanded on findings of Oswald et al. (1999) and included achievement variables with demographic and economic predictor variables of White, African American, Latino, Asian/Pacific Islander, and American Indian/A laskan Native ethnic/racial groups in an effort to better understand disproportionate representation of minorities in special education.In their study, demographic predictors included the base rates of various ethnic backgrounds (base rate of White students, base rate of African American/Black students, base rate of Hispanic/Latino students, base rate of Asian/Pacific Islander students, base rate of American Indian/Alaskan Native students) in the district, percentage of students in the community who were Limited English Proficient, and base rate of students in the district identified who had a disability.Economic predictors included median house value of the community, median household income, percentage of adults in community who have a 12th grade education or less, and percentage of children who are considered at risk. Academic predictors included percentage of each ethnic group who achieved mastery in criterion reading and criterion math. Results indicated that economic, demograp hic and academic blocks of variables contributed to the prediction of disproportionate representation.Specifically, Hosp and Reschly (2004) found that the block of economic variables was the strongest predictor for mental retardation diagnosis, the demographic block of variables was the strongest predictor for emotional disturbance, and the academic block of variables was a strong predictor for a learning disability diagnosis. For African American/Black, Hispanic/Latino, and American Indian/Alaskan Native students, the demographic variables were the strongest predictors for emotional disturbance and learning disability.It is not possible to comment on the influence of each individual variable in its ability to predict special education eligibility since related variables were grouped together as broader blocks of variables. An ecological framework How bias in the referral process, bias in assessment techniques, English Language Proficiency, gender, socioeconomic status, and demograp hics contribute to the disproportionate representation of minority students in special education may be better understood by considering an ecological developmental framework.According to Bronfenbrenner (1992), understanding human development requires a consideration of the interaction of diverse characteristics of a child and of the environment in which the child is embedded. Bronfenbrenner (1992) suggests a hierarchy of ecological contexts that effect human development that move from the most proximal to the most remote. The first of these contexts is the microsystem, which has the most power to influence the course of development for the child (Bronfenbrenner & Crouter, 1983).Bronfenbrenner (1992) defined a microsystem as â€Å"a pattern of activities, roles, and interpersonal relations experienced by the developing person in a given setting with particular physical and material features, and containing other persons with distinctive characteristics of temperament, personality, and systems of belief' (p. 227). Such settings include the home, school, or peer group. The microsystem considers the immediate environment a child develops in, as well as the characteristics of all other people (i. e. , parents, teachers, siblings, etc. ) also in that environment.The characteristics of other people in the child's environment might include demographic features (age, race/ethnicity, and sex), cognitive abilities and skills, or temperaments/personalities. For example, a child whose parents only speak a language other than English may have difficulty acquiring English, which may put them at risk for lower achievement scores and a higher probability of being referred for special education services. Children interact with their teachers daily. Personalities and belief systems of the teacher may impact how he/she views the child and therefore, influences how the teacher interacts with the child.A teacher who lacks cultural awareness may inappropriately refer a child to th e multidisciplinary team. Thus, the microsystem may be the most important ecological level to consider when analyzing factors that relate to the overrepresentation of specific racial/ethnic groups because it considers not only the characteristics of the environment a child develops in, but the characteristics of those who interact with that child. The most distal ecological system is the macrosystem. The macrosystem is the largest ecological level and is typically defined by region, societies, cultural values, and governmental and economic institutions.The macrosystem involves the belief systems prevailing in the world. At this level, the individual has little control over the factors related to disproportionality, but it is important to understand the intent of the laws governing special education programs and the national goal to decrease the overrepresentation of minority groups in special education. Conclusion Disproportionate representation is a complex phenomenon without a def inite etiology or solution. As a result of this complexity, consensus has yet to be reached regarding the actual causes of this persistent dilemma.What is clear is that a variety of educational, sociocultural, socioeconomic, and teacher and school-related factors appear to contribute to the disproportionate representation of minority students in special education programs. Current literature on overrepresentation of certain students in special education focuses more on the general patterns of disproportionality rather than examining if there are specific variables related to special education representation (Donovan & Cross, 2002). Thus, the causes of the disproportionate representation of minorities in special education are not clearly understood.Therefore, it is important to consider structural and community level variables to provide a framework for analyzing the problem. Indirectly these variables affect the prescribed evaluation procedures, parental involvement in the special e ducation process, and the availability of alternative programs (Turnbull & Turabull, 2001). Bronfenbrenner's (1992) expanded ecological paradigm provides a conceptual framework for examining and understanding the factors that influence disproportionate representation of minorities in special education.An ecological approach considers the context within which individuals function and that influence individuals. In using Bronfenbrenner's framework, the larger issue of disproportionality should consider the combined influences of various contexts a child is a member, including the locality (type of neighborhood and resources), the organization (school factors such as performance, racial/ethnicity composition, teacher:student ratios, or discipline), the microsystem (family characteristics such as size, socioeconomic status, and education level), and the individual (unique characteristics of the child)

The Circle By Dave Eggers - 931 Words

Throughout Dave Eggers’ extraordinary novel The Circle, many themes play conform in the interpretation and portrayal of the story. However, the theme of privacy rises above all others to be the main theme in the story. Through the examples of privacy within the novel such as the countless number of cameras and the completely glass workplace, lessons can be learned about the importance of privacy both individually as well as in terms of a society. Additionally, once the examples of privacy are identified, different opinions can be formed on the level of importance privacy should hold within an everyday human life as well as within society itself as a whole. Through Mae’s story we come to find that personal privacy is essential in order for people to be individuals as opposed to being exactly like one another, as well as the importance personal privacy holds when it comes to members of society functioning well with each other and growing as people. As well as analyzing Th e Circle in terms of privacy and the boundaries of privacy that should be implemented within a society, we also compare and contrasted The Circle with the United States Government today in terms of privacy. Within The Circle lie several examples of privacy such as the numerous number of cameras that cover every inch of the workplace, in addition to the all glass workplace where everything is pen to be viewed. The Circle demotes privacy, while its members criticize anyone who embraces the idea of privacyShow MoreRelated`` The Circle `` By Dave Eggers1904 Words   |  8 PagesTransparency is key in The Circle. Without it, no one can even attempt to know everything. To be transparent, one must allow others to see everything, to know everything. The Circle makes sure its employees know this to be fact, and it ensures that it is implemented. The Circle puts up a front that transparency equates to freedom, when in reality it is the opposite. The programs endorsed by the Circle are incred ibly restricting and promote total openness, going so far as to say that â€Å"secrets areRead MoreThe Circle By Dave Eggers1310 Words   |  6 Pagesculture has many different trends that can be used for entertainment, sending out a message, religious views, clothing, technology, etc. There are a lot of good trends that can benefit society, but there are also bad ones too. In the novel, â€Å"The Circle† by Dave Eggers, the author explains how different kind of things can change our society. For example, new innovative technology, social media, privacy, interaction with other people, and how this can affect people. In our present time youth culture, I believeRead MoreThe Circle By Dave Egger1826 Words   |  8 PagesDiscussion the process by which The Circle persuades people to give up their right of privacy Introduction Dave Egger’s â€Å"The Circle† strongly attacks The silicon Valley Cult that advocates forgiving people’s right of privacy and absolute obedience with a story. In the novel, a woman called Mae is recruited by a tech firm called The Circle. In the company, Mae is encouraged and even commanded to sacrifice her right of privacy to subordinate to the overall interest of The Circle. The essay aims to reveal theRead MoreThe Circle by Dave Eggers Essay2343 Words   |  10 Pagesreading up on current events, and staying connected in general. It’s only been 25 years since Tim Burners-Lee invented the world wide web and it’s no secret that it is one of the most progressive and influential invention of our time. Dave Eggers, in his current book The Circle, foretells his version of what can happen with the growth of technology and social media and pushes our current standard of being virtually connected from the main social networks Facebook, Twitter, Google, and Tumblr. In this bookRead MoreThe Circle Theme Essay1400 Words   |  6 Pagesnovel, The Circle, Dave Eggers creates a future society centered on money and power from digital innovation. Mae Holland, the determined protagonist from a humble beginnings, receives an opportunity to gain high status within the company but faces the challenge of managing the loss of her human privacy in a technologically advancing community. By applying ideas like technological determinism and McDonaldization to the Circle’s intrusive security measures and inauthentic interaction, Eggers draws a directRead MoreTechnology And Technology944 Words   |  4 PagesTechnology has become an increasing presence in society. Most of it has been for the better, but there is a dark side to technology that has been forming. Many works of literature have been written in order to expose this negative presence. The Circle by Dave Eggers, published in 2013, follows a young woman, Mae throughout her new job. S he has started working at a tech company, which becomes increasingly invasive and controlling of everyone’s lives. Similarly, in The Truman Show directed by Peter WeirRead MoreThe American Dream By Dave Eggers1992 Words   |  8 PagesDave Eggers, author of A Hologram for the King, Heroes of the Frontier and The Circle, among many other books, often comments on the American dream. Eggers believes that the American dream has changed over time, and is no longer an achievable goal. The American dream was initially the ideal of each man and women being able to reach their full potential and have equal opportunities (Amadeo). Yet this ideal slowly morphed into the necessity of owning a house and having a happy, prosperous family. InRead MoreThe Impact Of Social Media On Society1290 Words   |  6 Pagesremainder of the homo sapiens lifespan. With life-changing inventions like social media, debates spark whether it is a good thing for our society or not. Dave Eggers â€Å"The Ci rcle† shows the way social media can be a positive change for society with the Circle’s countless inventions that integrate social media. â€Å"SeeChange† is one of the inventions from the Circle that allows people to see HD quality live streams from a small device anywhere. Their claim is that with such devices we can make criminals and tyrantsRead MoreModern Technology And Its Impact On Society1684 Words   |  7 Pagesvalue as electronic devices develop. In the novel Circle, written by Dave Egger, the author explains that individuals will only use what one percent of what the world has to give because they become so distracted from what technology offers. The author makes connections to a technology’ distracting ability by stating, â€Å"†¦haven’t explored the gym, and you’ve barely explored the campus. I think you’ve used about 1 percent of our facilities† (Eggers 178) The advancement of technology endangers a person’sRead MoreTechnology Is The Invasion Of Our Privacy2067 Words   |  9 Pagessupposed to make our lives so much easier, actually make it so much harder? With the levels of technology, we have today, along with the internet and all of which the internet consumes, our privacy is basically non-existent. In the novel, The Circle, written by Dave Eggers, it is evident that with the uprising of technology, it is nearly impossible to have privacy and it affects our daily lives. It is not often that you come across someone who doesn’t have a cell phone of computer and it apart of some type

Why Were Flags So Important in the Civil War

Civil War soldiers placed great importance on the flags of their regiments, and men would sacrifice their lives defending a regimental flag to protect it from capture by the enemy. A great reverence for regimental flags is often reflected in accounts written during the Civil War, from newspapers to letters written by soldiers to official regimental histories. Its obvious that flags carried enormous significance. The respect for the flag of a regiment was partly a matter of pride and morale. But it also had a practical aspect closely associated with the conditions of a 19th century battlefield. Did You Know? The placement of regimental flags served as visual communication during Civil War battles. Vocal commands and bugle calls could not be heard on the noisy battlefields, so soldiers were trained to follow the flag. Flags Were Valuable Morale Builders Civil War armies, both Union and Confederate, tended to be organized as regiments from particular states. And soldiers tended to feel their first loyalty toward their regiment. Soldiers strongly believed they represented their home state (or even their local region in the state), and much of the morale of Civil War units was focused on that pride. And a state regiment typically carried its own flag into battle. Soldiers took a great deal of pride in those flags. The regimental battle flags were always treated with great reverence. At times ceremonies would be held in which the flags were paraded in front of the men. While these parade ground ceremonies tended to be symbolic, events designed to instill and reinforce morale, there was also a very practical purpose, which was making sure that every man could recognize the regimental flag. Practical Purposes of Civil War Battle Flags The regimental flags were critical in Civil War battles as they marked the position of the regiment on the battlefield, which could often be a very confused place. In the noise and smoke of battle, regiments could become scattered. Vocal commands, or even bugle calls, could not be heard. And, of course, armies at the time of the Civil War had no electronic means to communicate such as radios. So a visual rallying point was essential, and soldiers were trained to follow the flag. A popular song of the Civil War, The Battle Cry of Freedom, made mention of how well rally round the flag, boys. The reference to the flag, while ostensibly a patriotic boast, does actually play upon the practical use of flags as rallying points on the battlefield. Because the regimental flags had genuine strategic importance in battle, designated teams of soldiers, known as the color guard, carried them. A typical regimental color guard would consist of two color bearers, one carrying the national flag (the U.S. flag or a Confederate flag) and one carrying the regimental flag. Often two other soldiers were assigned to guard the color bearers. Being a color bearer was considered a mark of great distinction and it required a soldier of extraordinary bravery. The job was to carry the flag where the regimental officers directed, while unarmed and under fire. Most importantly, color bearers had to face the enemy and never break and run in retreat, or the entire regiment might follow. As the regimental flags were so conspicuous in battle, they were often used as a target for rifle and artillery fire. Of course, the mortality rate of color bearers was high. The bravery of color bearers was often celebrated. The cartoonist Thomas Nast drew a dramatic illustration in 1862 for the cover of Harpers Weekly captioned A Gallant Color-Bearer. It depicts the color bearer for the 10th New York Regiment clinging to the American flag after receiving three wounds. The Loss of a Civil War Battle Flag Was Considered a Disgrace With the regimental flags generally in the middle of the fighting, there was always the possibility that a flag could be captured. To a Civil War soldier, the loss of a regimental flag was a colossal disgrace. The entire regiment would feel shamed if the flag was captured and carried away by the enemy. Conversely, to capture the battle flag of an opponent was considered a great triumph, and captured flags were cherished as trophies. Accounts of Civil War battles in newspapers at the time would generally mention if any enemy flags had been captured. The Importance of Protecting the Regimental Flag Histories of the Civil War contain countless stories about regimental flags being protected in battle. Often the stories around the flag will recount how a color bearer was wounded or killed, and other men would pick up the fallen flag. According to popular legend, eight men of the 69th New York Volunteer Infantry (part of the legendary Irish Brigade) were either wounded or killed carrying the regimental flag during the charge on the Sunken Road at Antietam in September 1862. On the first day of the Battle of Gettysburg, July 1, 1863, the men of the 16th Maine were ordered to hold off an intense Confederate attack. As they became surrounded the men took the regimental flag and tore it into strips, with each man hiding a portion of the flag on their person. Many of the men were captured, and while serving time in Confederate prisons they managed to save the portions of the flag, which were eventually brought back to Maine as cherished items. Tattered Battle Flags Told a Regiment’s Story As the Civil War continued, regimental flags often became something of a scrapbook, as the names of battles fought by the regiment would be stitched onto the flags. And as flags became tattered in battle they took on deeper significance. At the end of the Civil War, state governments put considerable effort into collecting battle flags, and those collections were looked upon with great reverence in the late 19th century. And while those statehouse flag collections have generally been forgotten in modern times, they do still exist. And some extremely rare and significant Civil War battle flags were recently put on public display again for the Civil War Sesquicentennial.

Analyzing Some of Anna Akhmatovas Poetry - 726 Words

Unassuming Exuberance Anna Akhmatova lived from 1889 to 1966 during a dark, rough time in Russia. â€Å"Everything is Plundered,† â€Å"I Am Not One of Those Who Left the Land,† and â€Å"Midnight Verses† are prime examples of Akhmatova’s symbolic literature. Akhmatova used poetry to help her overcome difficulties in life; it was a way of expressing and setting her feelings free. All of Anna Akhmatova’s poems contain a common theme that connects to her real life: though life can be rough, it is important to deal with problems and work towards acceptance. In â€Å"Midnight Verses,† the theme is dark and tumultuous. This poem is a perfect reflection of Akhmatova’s life. She faced many complications in life, but she had to accept them because she did not want to give up on her home country. Likewise, Akhmatova’s poem has an unwilling acceptance at the end. â€Å"Midnight Verses† also displays her thoughts in a very creative way. â€Å"And the signal bells of light rhymes / Then I begin to understand / And the simply dictated lines / Lie down in the snow white notebook† (Akhmatova 13-16). Throughout â€Å"Midnight Verses,† Akhmatova uses powerful imagery, making it easy to relate to her thoughts. â€Å"Everything is Plundered† is another of Akhmatova’s poems that continues to illustrate this theme. In â€Å"Everything is Plundered,† the theme of confusion and contrast in life is present. The struggles in life are portrayed throughout the poem. This poem reflects humanity’s imperfect

Devices Our Vices Evolving Ideas

Question: Discuss about the Devices Our Vices for Evolving Ideas. Answer: Introduction The new era of technology has brought in various innovations and improvement in the lifestyles of human beings. With the development in the technology, lives of people have become much easier and technology oriented. Devices have become the controller of human lives. However, with the era of devices controlling our lives, the question arises, Are devices our vices? This essay highlights the issue that the devices and technology have controlled our lives. People have forgotten to talk, as they Google more. Moreover, the fact that human lives are becoming device dependent has also been focused in this assignment. The various issues that might be caused by the excessive use of technologies such as loss of employment, loss of memory retention power, have been mentioned and discussed in details. Impact of Technology on human Beings An article in the New York Times named Stop Googling. Lets Talk, highlights the issues of becoming device oriented and living a device dependent life. In the modern days, the tech savvy youths mention that they are capable of focusing on the class lectures along with typing in their smart phones at the same time (Carr). However, they remain undetected by the lecturer, who thinks that the student is concentrating in the class lectures. In a study conducted, in 2015, it was highlighted that 89% of the smart phone owners use their phones even during social gatherings (Carr). This statistics highlights the fact that people prefer to talk to a distant person using smart phones and social networking, rather than talking to the people around, attending the social gathering (Turkle). An experiment conducted highlights the fact that in a conversation among 5-6 people, only 3 people concentrate by looking up to the speakers, while others have divided attention as they are busy in their phones and personal devices along with paying some attention to the speaker (Danby). Thus, divided attention is given to the people. Thus, as a result, discussion is light and the in depth knowledge exchange is not achieved. Thus, devices are gaining priority that the human being around. Moreover, virtual relationships are gaining priority than the real life conversations (Carr). People are being more attached to the social networks and devices. Moreover, with the advancements in Google, people gain knowledge using the search engine, rather than gaining knowledge using formal and informal communication with peers and friends. Thus, the phrase Stop Googling. Lets talk , is most appropriately used. Talking to each other and gaining knowledge through conversations and discussions is an effective way of knowledge gain rather than Googling (de la Banda et al.). However, with the advancements in the technology, people prefer using the search engines and Internet, rather than actually talking to each other. Replying to queries have become synonymous to the term Googling. However, with these trends of being technology dependent, the human lives and social lives are highly affected. Families have become distant. People on the virtual world have become closer. Moreover, since human lives are becoming increasingly dependent on the technology, crash of the Internet, might result in the whole world to cease (Carr). With the increase in the dependency on the technology, the smart phones are no longer our necessity, but our lives. Even if phones are not in use, human beings keep searching and Googling, as a part of their habit. Thus, the devices have indeed becoming our vices. Loss of jobs Because of Technologies Another major issue that is raised by the experts around the world is the fact that, with the increase in the use of devices and technologies, and with the increase in the dependency, our jobs would soon be taken up by the robots. Technology is often termed as a double edge sword (Carr). This is so termed as on one hand, technologies and its use are more efficient than the human beings and they are a better substitute of human beings at the workplace (Hertlein). However, on the other hand, the extensive use of technologies destroys jobs. In most of the offices and workplaces around the world, considering any sector of work, computers as well as robots are replacing human beings. As new technologies, replace the human labours, economists highlights that the era of creative destruction has started (Carr). It has been highlighted by the experts, that with the wide use of Internet technologies in the airlines booking systems as well as travel agencies, the concept of travel agents have b ecome obsolete (Kim et al.). Thus, the thousands of travel agents around the world lost their jobs and were force to take up alternative employment options. There are hundreds of such jobs and employment sectors where human labours have been replaced by machines and robots (Henrich). In the race against machines, human beings have been left far behind in the race, and they are still struggling to cope up with the machines and robots. Since machines do not get bored, does not demand salary or increment, does not get tired, nor does they need job satisfaction (Usher). Hence, they are more desirable than the human beings are. Moreover, even in case of perfection, machines are far ahead of human beings. Thus, they are a better replacement of human beings. This might result in the replacement of the jobs by machines as well as the lives of people being controlled by the machines and robots. This is not desirable. Thus, it is essential that the use of the technology and machines is done i n a tactful manner and with intelligence, such that the creators of the machines and devices could retain the control of the devices in their hands. Impairment Due to Technologies Along with the issues of loss of jobs, excessive use of technology makes us use our brains less. The scope of thinking and analytical thinking has been decreasing day by day with the use of technologies (Carr). Researches highlight the fact that the excessive use of the web and technology has a strong and negative impact on the memory retention capacity (Lipson and Kurman). It has been observed that with the use of technology, people tend to set reminders and alerts in their phones and devices and gives the pain of remembering to the devices. Thus, the memory capacities of the human beings are decreased. Before the advent of smart phones and mobile phones, the phone numbers of the family members were memorized (Rogers). However, with the use of these devices people fail to remember their own numbers. Thus, human beings are making themselves paralysed, by the excessive use of technology (Carr). Thus, human beings are themselves employing technologies and robots, and increasing their d ependency on them, thus making their future unstable and insecure. Conclusion Technology and its use is indeed a boon for human lives. It makes our lives easier and smoother. However, the issues arise with the excessive use of technologies. The limit of the use to the human beings need to be set such that the technology cannot exploit the human lives. Since human beings employ technologies, hence it is essential to ensure that the control of the technology is in the hands of the human beings, and not the other way round. This essay highlights the facts that technology is replacing human beings at the workplace, resulting in loss of employment. Moreover, excessive use of technology has been making us less social. Thus, to conclude it might be stated that devices are not our vices. However, since we are the creators of the technologies, the control needs to be retained and the extent of use should be monitored to ensure that devices remain our boons. References Carr, Nicolas. "Is Google Making Us Stupid?(2008)."Focused Inquiry: Evolving Ideas2015 (2014): 101-07. Danby, Susan,. "Playing with technology: Young children making sense of technology as part of their everyday social worlds."Multidisciplinary Perspectives on Play: From Birth to Beyond. Springer, 2015. de la Banda, Maria Garcia, et al. "The future of optimization technology."Constraints19.2 (2014): 126-138. Henrich, Joseph.The secret of our success: how culture is driving human evolution, domesticating our species, and making us smarter. Princeton University Press, 2015. Hertlein, Katherine M., and Katrina Ancheta. "Advantages and disadvantages of technology in relationships: Findings from an open-ended survey."The Qualitative Report19.11 (2014): 1. Kim, Jennifer G., et al. "Labor Saving and Labor Making of Value in Online Congratulatory Messages."SocInfo. 2015. Lipson, Hod, and Melba Kurman.Fabricated: The new world of 3D printing. John Wiley Sons, 2013. Rogers, Yvonne. "Mindless or mindful technology?."Proceedings of the 2014 ACM SIGCHI symposium on Engineering interactive computing systems. ACM, 2014. Turkle, Sherry. "Stop googling. Lets talk."The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www. nytimes. com/2015/09/27/opinion/sunday/stop-googling-lets-talk. html(2015). Usher, Nikki.Making News at The New York Times. University of Michigan Press, 2014.