Sunday, November 24, 2019

Free Essays on Hills Like White Elephants

An Analysis of Ernest Hemingway’s â€Å"Hills Like White Elephants† â€Å"Hills Like White Elephants†, by Ernest Hemingway, is a short story published in 1927, which is set at a train station in Spain. In this story the reader eavesdrops on a conversation held by â€Å"the American and the girl with him†. Most of the story is predominately dialogue between the two characters. During this conversation, the reader may determine that the couple is at a critical point in their lives when they must make a life-or-death decision on whether the woman should have an abortion. Although this short story crosses timelines to become relevant to both the early twentieth century and today, Hemingway uses setting and symbolism throughout the story to show that making a decision on whether to have an abortion or not is indeed a difficult decision to make. The setting of the train station symbolizes the decision that the couple must make. On one side of the station, there is vegetation and â€Å"fields of grain†; the other side is dry and barren. The fact that the station divides these contrasts of environments represents each choice in the abortion decision. The choice to have the abortion is represented by the dry and barren side, while the lush fields of grain represent the fertility of having the baby. Our first encounter with Hemingway’s symbolism is in the title, â€Å"Hills Like White Elephants†, which offers some hints to the ensuing conflict within the story. The imagery associated with the hills can be taken to represent the pregnant woman’s abdomen and breasts swollen when she is with child. White elephants are considered to be a sacred being something to be revered, whereas in American culture a white elephant is a gift that is unwanted. As a result of symbolism, the title gives us the first indication of the conflict to come. Hemingway never mentions the word abortion directly to let the reader know that this is the pos... Free Essays on Hills Like White Elephants Free Essays on Hills Like White Elephants â€Å"Hills Like White Elephants† is a short third person perspective limited story by Ernest Hemingway. An American man and a woman are sitting at a train station in the northern part of Spain. They are on their way to an operation for the women. The two seem to be a couple but unknown of what their status is but unlikely they are married. The title of the story fits into the story in many different ways, it all depends on how the reader understands it. This will explain the reason for their location and departure. The women seems to be more in love with the man at the present moment because of the way that they are acting towards each other and their tones of voice. She is trying to make him feel bad by telling him things, and then being sarcastic but also trying to make him forget about the operation he is trying to force her to have but she doesn’t want to. They are sitting outside of a train station drinking beers and other alcoholic beverages while waiting for the train. She mentions the hills that are in front of them on the other side of the railroad tracks and how their color resembles a â€Å"White Elephants† color. White Elephants is a rare Asian elephant but it also means about a handful of other things such as a rare and expensive possession that is difficult to maintain or an article no longer wanted by its owner. Another meaningful meaning it has is an endeavor or venture that is proved a conspicuous failure. She feels that their journey will end now because of this operation. The man feels as if it won’t and if they do have the operation that things will be as they were before with no problems. The reason of the operation is unknown but if she does not have the operation it will be the only problem they’ve ever had in their relationship. He tells her that everything will be the same as before after the operation and it is not even an operation, all it is, is just letting the air in, and that’s it. Af... Free Essays on Hills Like White Elephants An Analysis of Ernest Hemingway’s â€Å"Hills Like White Elephants† â€Å"Hills Like White Elephants†, by Ernest Hemingway, is a short story published in 1927, which is set at a train station in Spain. In this story the reader eavesdrops on a conversation held by â€Å"the American and the girl with him†. Most of the story is predominately dialogue between the two characters. During this conversation, the reader may determine that the couple is at a critical point in their lives when they must make a life-or-death decision on whether the woman should have an abortion. Although this short story crosses timelines to become relevant to both the early twentieth century and today, Hemingway uses setting and symbolism throughout the story to show that making a decision on whether to have an abortion or not is indeed a difficult decision to make. The setting of the train station symbolizes the decision that the couple must make. On one side of the station, there is vegetation and â€Å"fields of grain†; the other side is dry and barren. The fact that the station divides these contrasts of environments represents each choice in the abortion decision. The choice to have the abortion is represented by the dry and barren side, while the lush fields of grain represent the fertility of having the baby. Our first encounter with Hemingway’s symbolism is in the title, â€Å"Hills Like White Elephants†, which offers some hints to the ensuing conflict within the story. The imagery associated with the hills can be taken to represent the pregnant woman’s abdomen and breasts swollen when she is with child. White elephants are considered to be a sacred being something to be revered, whereas in American culture a white elephant is a gift that is unwanted. As a result of symbolism, the title gives us the first indication of the conflict to come. Hemingway never mentions the word abortion directly to let the reader know that this is the pos... Free Essays on Hills Like White Elephants The most striking feature of this short story is the way in which it is told. It is not a story in the classical sense with an introduction, a development of the story and an end, but we just get some time in the life of two people, as if it were just a piece of a film where we have a lot to deduce, This story doesn't give everything done for the reader, we only see the surface of what is going on. It leaves an open end, readers can have their own ending and therefore take part in the story when reading. The story told here is that of a woman and a man in their trip to a place where she can have an abortion. Everything in the tale is related to the idea of fertility and barrenness. This main topic can be seen from the title Hills Like White Elephants, where Hills refer to the shape of the belly of a pregnant woman, and White Elephants is an idiom that refers to useless or unwanted things. In this case the unwanted thing is the foetus they are going to get rid of. In the beginning we find a narrator that describes with a simple language the area where it is going to take place. We can see that the story happens in Spain, in the Valley of the Ebro, and we also see that the train the characters are going to take is an express train that comes from Barcelona and goes to Madrid, but we don't know exactly where they are or the time ordate in which it takes place, we don't even know if they really take the train. The train here symbolizes change, movement but in some way they are scared of it as movement is not always forward but it can also be backwards in this case in their relationship. It is the "train of life". Another thing we must take into account is the fact that the train is stopping only for two minutes, a very short time. This limited time symbolizes the time she has to have the abortion, she cannot think it over for a long time first because the later she has the abortion the more risky for her health it gets and second, becaus... Free Essays on Hills Like White Elephants Hills Like White Elephants The story Hills Like White Elephants by Ernest Hemingway is about two lover’s false perceptions and disillusion. A man and a girl constantly travel never staying in one place because the two are insecure about settling down. The couple’s insecurities directly effect their irresponsible behavior. The major conflict in the story arises when the girl finds that she is pregnant. The characters disillusionments and false perceptions ultimately lead to an unhappy lifestyle. The man and the girl depend on their separation from the world. The two are drifters traveling to different cities, staying in hotels. They have limited to no involvement with society. The characters believe that if they don’t stay in one place they will have no commitment to anything in their life. Traveling around is their way to avoid life’s problems. The setting of the story is in a train station which symbolizes their need to be away from home and distant from their problems. While in the station they are waiting having cocktails. The girl says â€Å"I wanted to try this new drink: thats all we do, isn’t it – look at new things and try new drinks.† The quote is describing that the girl is upset with their lifestyle of traveling around seeing new things to preoccupy themselves. The characters use alcohol to dull their experiences adding to each others disillusionment. Throughout the story the two are discussing their lives over drink. It seems like the couple are frequent drinkers as conveyed in the girl’s the quote, â€Å"thats all we do, isn’t it† referring to drinking all time every where they go. Alcohol abuse is consist with some people trying to escape from their problems. The characters drink all time to forget about their sad lives and farther propel their journey to no where. Drinking impairs the character’s judgements for the decisions they face. Alcohol is a mask for thes...

Thursday, November 21, 2019

History Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 32

History - Assignment Example For instance, the American mixed martial arts (MMA) is one such sport whereby two competitors fight it out to see who has the better skill, determination and athleticism to beat down their opponent, just the way the gladiators used to do in Rome (DeCosemo 1). As events of modern day sport, it’s not all about the game, there are other things included such as involvement of characters, determination, technical skill and the personal drama (DeCosemo 1). A few good examples of this would be present day football or soccer, American football, Basketball, and baseball. So during the Roman Empire it was gladiator fights that brought spectators or people together to sit and watch gladiators fight and kill each other. While everything else remains the same from the Roman times to present day sports such as the intensity, cheering, and shouts of spectators or fans, the only difference in modern sports is that they is no killings in the name of being victorious as was the case in gladiator fights (DeCosemo 1). It can safely be said that sports have changed over the centuries since the era of the Roman Empire. Not any more do we find men sword fighting or even fighting wild animals. Yet, there are still several similarities between the Roman Empire sports and the modern day sports, especially in terms of spectators and fans. In both the ancient and modern day sports, there are people who adore the game and

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Instructions for Term Paper Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Instructions for Term Paper - Assignment Example The bill was only a show of political fantasy. In fact, the bill was ironical since the abortion rates have dropped by 13 percent for the last decade. If their intentions were to reduce abortion, they should instead campaign for the increase of birth control pills. An exception to the bill would be for abortions that result from rape pregnancies. In his conclusion, the author states there are more to attend to than dwell on useless politics. Throughout the article, the author uses both facts and opinions. He, for example, makes an opinion when he says the Republican members are making up wars they cannot win. He emphasizes that the country’s growth will remain stagnant until when the GOP leaders and ideologues will upgrade their thinking and understanding. Additionally, he points out that the bill was nothing more than an act of fantasy. The author also uses facts in the article. According to the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), he says the abortion rate reduced by 13 percent between 2002 and 2011. In an effort to substantiate the reduction in abortions, he states that there have been few instances of unwanted pregnancies (Robinson). The CDC also reports that only about 1.4 percent abortions are carried out after 20 weeks. As he states, it is also a fact that the bill would have several obstacles before becoming law. The Republicans would need a considerable backup from the Democrats, and the presi dent would also have to veto the measure (Robinson). The author is more of a libertarian than a conservative. He insists that the nation is in economic recovery and everyone needs to address its infrastructure and competitiveness. He says that the nation faces several challenges such as global warming and terrorism that the government must take actions to avert. The author’s sentiments make him seem inclined to the Democrats camp. He says the bill was an act of

Monday, November 18, 2019

Marijuana legalization Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Marijuana legalization - Research Paper Example Apparently, arrests on marijuana account for more than half of the drug convictions leading to overcrowding in prisons (Gerber 33). Legalization of the drug will cause a drop in the number of arrests. It also means that state governments will reduce expenditure on the fight against drugs. Economically stable countries have invested much on the fight against illegal drugs. Marijuana is most common among the young populations hence its legalization will prevent the use of other illegal hard drugs. Economically, States are bound to benefit from the production of legalized marijuana. Investors and entrepreneurs will come up with plantations of the drug causing an increase in incomes. The farms and industries will also create employment opportunities leading to improved lifestyles. After its legalizations, policies will be passed such as those used to control alcohol consumption. The states will benefit from fines since individuals will be charged with inappropriate consumption. Funds dedicated to the fight against the use of marijuana will be channeled to other public activities. Cannabis Sativa has been used for medicinal reasons for a long time. Medical research has shown that marijuana can be used to heal nausea caused by other major ailments. It has also been used on individuals suffering from fatigue to help them relax and prevent stress related disorders. Doctors have recommended that medical marijuana should be used to cause sleep in patients suffering from insomnia. Chemotherapy has been introduced in most hospitals due to the advancement in technology. On the contrary, it has side effects such as nausea and loss of appetite. Medical marijuana can be used on cancer patients to heal the impacts of chemotherapy. Legalization will prevent issues associated with black market because it will be readily available in hospitals (Morgan 36). Street related

Friday, November 15, 2019

Has Television Taken Over Photography?

Has Television Taken Over Photography? In the age of television and internet streaming videos, photography is no longer as pervasive a tool of social control as it used to be. Its golden age is now over, since it flourished and died along with the great dictatorships of the 20th Century. In fact, the most eloquent examples of the use of photography as a means to seduce people and annihilate their ability of a critical analysis of reality (in order to submit their will to the goals of a governing elite) can be found in the period between the 1920’s and the 1950’s. It was in such period that the fascist, nazi, and communist propaganda saw in photographers the perfect craftsmen who could transform images, often fake or posed, into messages to convey a particular information about what was going on in their country. In Italy, it was through the pictures taken by anonymous photographers that Benito Mussolini managed to give the people the idea of being part of a great nation, where everybody (intellectuals, sport smen, the Church, the unions, the common men) were proud to demonstrate their faith in the fascist regime[1]. It was through them that he was able to depict the country as a plentiful land, led by a good-hearted man embodying the virtues of the great Roman emperors. Most of those photographers were working for the same institution, the Istituto Luce, a formally independent organism that was actually controlled by the fascist regime. Its purpose was to operate as a modern news agency, but any proof of the disastrous economic and social conditions of many areas of Italy (such as Sicily, Veneto or Sardinia) was withdrew from the press. So, there were no news, if they had to be bad news. Another example of Mussolini’s attempt at distorting reality was the photographic book Italia imperiale (Imperial Italy), published in 1937. The author, Manilo Morgagni, wrote a visual elegy of the virtues of the dictator. In the same period, Adolf Hitler was making a similar use of photography in Germany, especially thanks to the collaboration of Leni Riefenstahl, who later would become one of the most famous artists of the world. The book Schoenheit im Olympischen Kampf (Beauty in the Olympic games), published in 1938, was a collection of her shots of the German youth, taken during the Olympic Games held in Berlin in 1936; it was an instrument of Hitler’s propaganda aimed at celebrating the perfect bodily features that only the pure Aryan race could boast[2]. In this way, German population was given an amount of visual messages that confirmed the superiority of their race, so that there was no questioning about the crimes their leader was committing in foreign countries. On the other hand, Hitler wie ihn keiner kennt (The unknown Hitler) was an homage to the Furher from his personal photographer, Heinrich Hoffmann, and was completely dedicated to him and his private life. It showed a leader ca ressing children and enjoying mountain resorts, depicting him as father and protector on the nation. In the USSR, Iosif Stalin reduced the avant-garde photographer Aleksandr Rodchenko to a mere instrument to convey the perfection of a state working in the best imaginable way, where every movement was preordained and nothing could go wrong. In fact, the usual subjects of Rodchenko were military parades and public meetings, during which everybody had a specific role to play and a proper place to fit in[3]. Moreover, Stalin made a wide use of photomontage to insert his figure in all the topic moments of the October Revolution of 1917, so that the people were induced to think that it was him who actively participated and fought in the process that led to the creation of a land that was supposedly governed by them. Another famous example of the way photography and its manipulation were used to attain the consent of the people is the picture taken by Yevgeny Khaldei in Berlin on May 2nd, 1945. It is the image of a soldier of the Red Army raising the communist flag on the roof of the Reich stag[4]. Since Khaldei arrived too late, when the action had already been accomplished, he asked a soldier to repeat it in order to fix the moment on film, and give Russian population another proof of the power of their leader. Further east, Mao Tse-tung was acting in the same way, one of his preferred photographers being Li Zenghshen, who took also many shots of the atrocities committed by the regime but hid them until the late Nineties, when he thought it was safe to show them to the public without risking to be prosecuted by the communist regime. The above mentioned examples are taken from the major dictatorships of the past century; nonetheless in the 1930’s the greatest democracy of the world, the USA, had a similar approach to photography, although lacking the militaristic vision of the country that characterised the totalitarian regimes. The American government did not make a wide and evident use of photography to make its citizens agree on its political and financial behaviour, but in some occasions documentary images were used as proofs of the necessity of its decisions. The Farm Security Administration, for instance, was founded in 1935 by president Franklin Delano Roosevelt as part of his New Deal program aimed at rescuing the nation after the great depression of 1929. Its goal was to relieve the rural populations from their poverty and many famous photographers (Russell Lee, Jack Delano, Dorothea Lange, Walker Evans among the others) were hired to document their situation, in order to inform about it people li ving in the urban areas. But this project was also meant to provide a visual justification on how and why the government was spending public money, preventing any questioning by the richest part of the population[5]. The best output of this policy was a book compiled by Archibald McLeish, titled Land of the free and published in 1938. In the meanwhile, another way to use photography in order to exert social control was beginning to see the light in the USA. But this one was completely different from the propaganda experienced in Europe, since it was focused on not showing, rather than on showing. It is the case of the 216 nuclear tests held by the Army between 1945 and 1962 (in the desert in the state of Nevada or in the middle of the Pacific Ocean). They were documented by anonymous officials mainly through aerial photography, but the pictures were kept in secret archives till very recently, because the government thought that such experiments might arise doubts in public opinion about nuclear power and the cold war[6]. This attitude quickly developed and expanded to the majority of the nations, prompting governments to prevent their people from looking at what might endanger their consent. A form of undeclared censorship has been watching over photography all the time, and war reporters have been its principal t argets. One of the most recent and outstanding case is the story occurred to a now famous picture taken by Kenneth Jarecke during the first Gulf War (1991). He shot the body of an Iraqi soldier, burnt to a cinder by American bombing while he was retreating with his troop on the Basra road[7]. This picture was published abroad but not in the USA until the war was definitively over, since it might counter the Pentagon’s notion of a technological a war amended of all the atrocities of the previous ones. Nonetheless, nowadays television has taken over the role that was played by photography, and it has become the principal tool to exert social control. Probably, this function is still accomplished by photography only through commercials, but in this case the aim is altering people’s perception of reality in order to influence their needs. The most interesting aspect of this function is that who is sending the message to the public usually does not depict a fake situation as it were real, nor does hide a particular side of it. Most commercials evoke a hypertechnological world or a lost one, like in Marlboro Country’s advertisements, where values and lifestyle are as simple and good as in the good old days[8]. Two opposite worlds that have just one feature in common: they can be reached through the product advertised. This kind of social control is very different from that exercised through propaganda and censorship, but it must be noted that its target is not the citizen as a political individual, but the consumer as a participant in the local and global market. Moreover, there is not such a monopoly of the mass media as the one that is proper of a governing institution, but all the organs emitting messages to control the public are constantly competing against each other to be most visible. Consequently, this particular use of photography requires bigger and more accessible platforms wherefore communicate, such as glossy, fancy magazines and huge city billboards. Bibliography Michael Famighetti: Underexposed, Aperture 173, winter 2003, pages 14-16. Marshall McLuhan: Understanding media, Routledge, 2002, chapters 2 and 20. Martin Parr and Gerry Badger: The photobook: a history. Volume 1, Pahidon, 2004, chapter 6. Ian Jeffrey: Photography, Thames and Hudson, 1981, chapter 9. Li Zhensheng: Red-color news soldier, Phaidon, 2003. Michael Light: 100 Suns, Contrasto Due, 2004. 1 Footnotes [1] See picture 1 [2] See pictures 2 and 3 [3] See picture 4 [4] See picture 5 [5] See picture 6, by Dorothea Lange [6] See pictures 7, 8 and 9 [7] See picture 10 [8] See picture 11

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

Russell, Strawson, and William of Ockham :: Philosophy of Language

Realism and conventionalism generally establish the parameters of debate over universals. Do abstract terms in language refer to abstract things in the world? The realist answers yes, leaving us with an inflated ontology; the conventionalist answers no, leaving us with subjective categories. I want to defend nominalism — in its original medieval sense, as one possibility that aims to preserve objectivity while positing nothing more than concrete individuals in the world. First, I will present paradigmatic statements of realism and conventionalism as developed by Russell and Strawson. Then, I will present the nominalist alternative as developed by William of Ockham. Realism and conventionalism are commonly taken to be the primary contenders in the debate over universals. Does abstract language refer to abstract things in the world? The realist answers yes, leaving us with an inflated ontology, the conventionalist answers no, leaving us with subjective categories. In this paper I would like to defend a third possibility which aims to preserve objectivity without multiplying objects. It is nominalism, in the original, medieval sense of the word — or more specifically, in the Ockham sense of the word. Willard Quine once remarked that "the nominalists of old . . . object to admitting abstract entities at all, even in the restrained sense of mind-made entities."(1) This is certainly true of Roscelin, the eleventh-century anti-realist who famously asserted that a universal is nothing but a flapping of the vocal chords. And Quine’s remark is true of Ockham as well, in so far as he asserted that a universal is nothing but a particular thought in the mind. Yet thoughts, even if particular, are not exactly concrete, and they do abstract, according to Ockham, in a way that Roscelin’s flapping vocal cords do not. I won’t be able to defend Ockham’s nominalism by refuting all of the many versions of the competition one by one. What I propose to do instead is set it up in relation to the celebrated exchange between Bertrand Russell and P. F. Strawson. In this exchange, Russell and Strawson were trying to figure out how a sentence can be meaningful even when the thing the subject of the sentence refers to does not exist. Russell makes what I take to be the classic realist mistake; Strawson, the conventionalist. In what follows I will first explain Ockham’s alternative and then show why I think it compares favorably against these twentieth-century counterparts.

Sunday, November 10, 2019

Philosophy of Gifted Students Essay

Shona Hemphill July 22, 2009 EDSP 4510 sec. 476 Structuring Gifted Programs If I had to pick the most important model from the Structuring Gifted Programs figure in chapter eleven, I would have to choose Individualized Instruction. This model breaks down instructions for assignments in a manner that is unique to an individual’s understanding. If a student does not understand the instructions, the teacher will personally come to the student and explain the instructions to him/her. Or, the teacher could possibly already be aware of the students who are gifted and incorporate special instructions for the gifted students. A regular lesson plan may not be challenging enough for a student who is gifted. I personally have a problem understanding instructions and I know how accommodating this model can be. Everyone processes information differently and that should not be the reason why students fail or gifted students go unnoticed. Breaking down instructions individually is extremely important because it helps to determine what kind of student you are dealing with. Take myself for example, on our first assignment I did not find all of the instruction, therefore, the assignment that I turned in was not the best that it could have been. However, once I was provided a second chance, and I fully understood the instruction, I was able to give one hundred percent to the assignment, and earned a grade of ninety six percent. Had I not had the opportunity to go back and really understand the instructions, I would have probably received a â€Å"C† for that assignment. Properly understanding instructions play a major part in a student’s performance, and Individualized Instruction can be a big help with this issue. Another important model from the figure in chapter eleven is, Gifted Clusters. I believe that this model focuses on getting groups of gifted students together to learn on a more advanced level. The gifted students that are in a classroom can be clustered together whenever there are group projects, that way it relieves the pressure of the gifted student doing all of the work whenever they are assigned to a group. This model also helps the gifted students to feel included because they will be surrounded with people that are a lot like themselves. Sometimes gifted students have a problem with fitting in with other students. This model is one of the best because it attempts to resolve the issue of fitting in. Being in a cluster of gifted individuals help the students feel as if they belong. With the everyday pressure that gifted students experience, this model may slightly lessen some of the pressure because it lays the foundation of a social network. Sometimes socializing can be difficult for gifted students, but if they were grouped together, it just might be easier to open up, and get to know one another. This model is important because it may also have an effect on self esteem. Once students began to socialize and find a place where they feel like they fit in, they began to become more confident and self assured. I speak from experience. I was lost at one point and really felt like I did not belong. I then started to hang out with people who were more like me and had some of the same beliefs and values that I possessed. Before I knew it, I was not as shy, I noticed that I walked with my head held high, and I became a social butterfly. When I think back about five years ago, I was nothing like I am now, and I have my cluster of friends to thank for that. The last model from the figure in chapter eleven that I find to be extremely important is Honors Classes. This model concentrates on placing gifted students in the appropriate classes so that they can reach their fullest potential. If a student is performing at a level that seems to be more advanced that average students, then they will be placed in honors classes. Honors classes are a bit more challenging than the standard classes that are traditionally taught in schools. Sometimes these classes can be fast paced and cover twice as much information than the standard classes. These classes really attempt to cater to the gifted students. This model is one of the important ones because of the challenges that honors classes provide for the gifted students. These classes allow the students to use their knowledge and skills and to keep the brain actively learning. As I said before, nothing is worst than getting out of bed in the morning and going to school, only to learn something that you already know. Honors classes help to maintain a student’s giftedness, and without it, the student’s brain capacity may decrease if it is not continually being stimulated. Every school should offer honors classes because it is imperative that students get the education that is individually required for them to have the most successful academic career as possible.

Friday, November 8, 2019

Biography of Bessie Blount, American Inventor

Biography of Bessie Blount, American Inventor Bessie Blount (November 24, 1914–December 30, 2009) was an American physical therapist, forensic scientist, and inventor. While working with injured soldiers after World War II, she developed a device that allowed amputees to feed themselves; it delivered one mouthful of food at a time to patients whenever they bit down on a tube. Griffin later invented a receptacle that was a simpler and smaller version of the same, designed to be worn around a patients neck. Fast Facts: Bessie Blount Known For: While working as a physical therapist, Blount invented assistive devices for amputees; she later made contributions to the field of forensic science.Also Known As: Bessie Blount GriffinBorn: November 24, 1914 in Hickory, VirginiaDied: December 30, 2009 in Newfield, New JerseyEducation: Panzer College  of Physical Education and Hygiene (now Montclair State University)Awards and Honors: Virginia Women in History Honoree Early Life Bessie Blount was born in Hickory, Virginia, on November 24, 1914. She received her primary education at Diggs Chapel Elementary School, an institution that served African-Americans. However, a lack of public resources forced her to end her education before she had completed middle school. Blounts family then moved from Virginia to New Jersey. There, Blount taught herself the material required to earn her GED. In Newark, she studied to be a nurse at Community Kennedy Memorial Hospital. She went on to study at the Panzer College of Physical Education (now Montclair State University) and became a certified physical therapist. Physical Therapy After finishing her training, Blount began working as a physical therapist at the Bronx Hospital in New York. Many of her patients were soldiers who had been wounded during World War II. Their injuries, in some cases, prevented them from performing basic tasks, and Blounts job was to help them learn new ways to do these things using their feet or teeth. Such work was not only physical rehabilitation; its goal was also to help veterans regain their independence and sense of control. Inventions Blounts patients faced numerous challenges, and one of the biggest was finding and developing new ways to eat on their own. For many amputees, this was especially difficult. To help them, Blount invented a device that delivered one bite of food at a time through a tube. Each bite was released when the patient bit down on the tube. This invention allowed amputees and other injured patients to eat without assistance from a nurse. Despite its usefulness, Blount was unable to successfully market her invention, and she found no support from the United States Veterans Administration. She later donated the patent rights to her self-feeding device to the French government. The French put the device to good use, making life much easier for many war veterans. Later, when asked why she gave away the device for free, Blount said she wasnt interested in money; she simply wanted to prove that black women were capable of more than [nursing] babies and [cleaning] toilets. Blount continued to search for new ways to improve the lives of her patients. Her next invention was a portable receptacle support, which hung around the neck and allowed patients to hold objects near their face. The device was designed to hold a cup or a bowl, from which patients could sip using a straw. In 1951, Blount officially received a patent for her self-feeding device; it was filed under her married name, Bessie Blount Griffin. In 1953, she became the first woman and the first African-American to appear on the television show The Big Idea, where she exhibited some of her inventions. While working as a physical therapist for Theodore Miller Edison, the son of inventor Thomas Edison, Blount developed a design for a disposable emesis basin (the receptacle used to collect bodily fluids and waste in hospitals). Blount used a combination of newspaper, flour, and water to produce a material similar to papier-mache. With this, she made her first disposable emesis basins, which would have saved hospital workers from having to clean and sanitize the stainless steel basins used at the time. Once again, Blount presented her invention to the Veterans Administration, but the group had no interest in her design. Blount patented the invention and sold the rights to a medical supplies company in Belgium instead. Her disposable emesis basin is still used in Belgian hospitals today. Forensic Science Blount eventually retired from physical therapy. In 1969, she began working as a forensic scientist, assisting law enforcement officers in New Jersey and Virginia. Her main role was to translate the academic findings of forensic science research into practical guidelines and tools for officers on the ground. Over the course of her career, she became interested in the relationship between handwriting and human health; Blount had observed that writing- a fine-motor skill- could be affected by different forms of disease, including dementia and Alzheimers. Her inquiries into this area led her to publish a groundbreaking paper on medical graphology. Soon Blount was in high demand for her expertise in this emerging field. During the 1970s, she assisted police departments across New Jersey and Virginia, and she even served for a time as a chief examiner. In 1977, she was invited to London to assist British police with handwriting analysis. Blount became the first African-American woman to work for Scotland Yard. Death Blount died in Newfield, New Jersey, on December 30, 2009. She was 95 years old. Legacy Blount made major contributions in both the medical and forensic science fields. She is best remembered for the assistive devices she invented as a physical therapist and for her innovative work in graphology. Sources Inventors and Inventions. Marshall Cavendish, 2008.McNeill, Leila. The Woman Who Made a Device to Help Disabled Veterans Feed Themselves-and Gave It Away for Free. Smithsonian Institution, 17 Oct. 2018.Morrison, Heather S. Inventors of Health and Medical Technology. Cavendish Square, 2016.Overlooked No More: Bessie Blount, Nurse, Wartime Inventor and Handwriting Expert.The New York Times, 28 Mar. 2019.

Wednesday, November 6, 2019

John Smith and William Bradford essays

John Smith and William Bradford essays John Smith's persuasive pamphlet and William Bradford's Of Plymouth Plantation each present a different picture of the same pre-colonial land of New England. Smith's writing painted a colorful picture of the new land, whereas Bradford's historical account shows early New England was not Heaven on Earth. Mr. Bradford and Mr. Smith are writing about one land, but they present two different accounts of the life in the land. John Smith's writing is his ideal vision of what the new land could be with the best of people colonizing the new land. John Smith's fine piece of literature may also be considered a beautifully worded, finely tuned piece of propaganda. Mr. Smith wrote this selection to influence people to leave their lives in England and cross the globe to start a new life in a strange land. John Smith described a a land where little work was needed, and riches could be easily acquired. A man with little fishing ability could catch one hundred, two hundred, or three hundred fish a day. He tells of animals perfect for hunting that give plenty of food to live on, and rich furs that could be traded for money. Mr. Smith declares the land free, so anyone could come to the New World and accumulate great wealth. John Smith envisioned a land where all men would live in peace and harmony, a vision that would not be fulfilled in New England William Bradford's history of the Pilgrims, in Of Plymouth Plantation, sheds a uniquely different light on life in colonial New England. Bradford's account depicts many hardships that had to be overcome by the Pilgrims, before their ideal land began to take shape. Bradford describes arriving in New England in the late fall as fatal for many of the Pilgrims. The first winter took its toll on the colonists. Forced to live on the boat, many people died of scurvy or starved. When they finally were able to stay on land, they found the ...

Monday, November 4, 2019

Descriptive and Inferential Statistics Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Descriptive and Inferential Statistics - Essay Example Statistics is a mathematical method which aid in the processing of pertinent information and decision making. This application provides methodological tools and are divided into two main areas: The Descriptive Statistics and Inferential Statistics. Descriptive statistics produces a number or figures to consolidate huge amount of information. For example, an average, is a descriptive statistics. Hence, average of daily intake, average of rainfall, or average body temperature are few examples of descriptive statistics. The role of descriptive statistics is to organize, summarize, and describe the given data. The fundamental idea employed in this type of statistical application is that, it summarizes a set of data with one number or graph. Furthermore, it should be noted that this type of statistics is cannot be used to produce generalizations, but only to summarize the values and to describe data based from one or more samples. , they too are called descriptive. On the other hand, inferential statistics as the name implies, is purposely to draw conclusions as well as to draw inferences, or to genera

Friday, November 1, 2019

Gramification Literature review Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Gramification - Literature review Example This often leads the customers to act in such a way that under their motivation of earning benefits, they actually work in favour of the firms’ objectives. Different companies use different ways to gamify their non gaming applications. Organizations develop their own customer response measurement criteria on the basis of the gaming mechanics. These criteria help in assessing the level of customer engagement and evaluating the success rate of the gaming program. Table of Contents Gamification 4 Uses of gamification 5 Examples of gamification 6 Response of target group 7 Reference List 9 Appendix 11 Literature review Gamification Gamification is a concept that is sued for a variety of purposes in businesses. According to most scholars, there is no standard definition that would be appropriate for defining this term. However, it has been generally agreed that gamification â€Å"refers to the design process of taking things that are not games and trying to make them feel more lik e games† (Molesworth and Knott, 2013). In terms of marketing, gamification might be reflected as an art or as the science of converting the everyday interaction of the customers into games in such a way that the new design would be beneficial for the business. Gamification effectively integrates the mechanics and dynamics of games into various non-gaming applications such as, community building deeds, employee training programs, websites building and maintenance as well as marketing procedures or customer service (Happiest minds, 2012). Characteristically, as the name suggests, gamification is the process of applying gaming pattern of thinking to applications that are not games, so as to make these applications more fun oriented and for engaging higher number of customers towards the company providing the service. Industry experts claim that in the modern day business atmosphere, gamification has become an important trend which possesses huge potential for the future (Otnes an d Tuncay-Zayer, 2012). In the era of technological advancement, gamification has been considered as one of the most important emergence that can be applied to most growing firms in various industries. The process involves the creation of fun applications that would engage customers in the form of players. The experiences and views of customers would be used by decision makers in businesses for the improving their business performance. Gamification aims at incentivising consumer engagement with the enterprises and invoking loyalty towards organisations (Martinez, 2012). This is done in the form of launching games, customer interactions as well as membership benefits. It has been argued by various researchers that the prime objective of gamification is to maximise the concerned company’s share in the total expenditure made by consumers. It is aimed at ensuring that consumers express a specific bias towards some particular organization while making purchasing decision of some pr oduct or service. Uses of gamification Gamification provides various benefits to the firms. These benefits are enjoyed by firms according to the extent to which the gamification practices are implemented. One of the most important benefits earned by firms is higher profits. Besides, this process is capable of increasing efficiency of the firm while reducing costs incurred in the